


Swayed By Monsters - a Collection of Undertale Oneshots

by nighttimelights



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: (that one's in chapter 12/the 12th oneshot), F/M, Fluff, Gen, Multi, Oneshot collection, Other, Poly Relationship, Shenanigans, a little something for most people looking for that sweet reader insert goodness, all SFW, just a place to post up my shorter stories for the undertale fandom, miscellaneous oneshots, not a regularly updated thing - just whenever i have an itching for a oneshot heh, occasional cursing, oneshots, so subscribe if you like these to get notifications of when there's a new one!, they're all xReader SO
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-03-18
Updated: 2018-07-15
Packaged: 2019-04-04 09:55:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 25,711
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14017725
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nighttimelights/pseuds/nighttimelights
Summary: Does Sans give you those sweet sweet feelings? Do you want to get cozy with the cuddliest monsters - skeletons? Do you find yourself with the hots for certain flame elementals?There's probably something in here for you! Each chapter is a standalone oneshot with different Undertale & Undertale AU characters in an xReader scenario. All chapters titles lead with the character that is the focus. Leave a comment on the ones you're a fan of and let me know what you think! <3





	1. xUT Grillby - Reuniting with an old friend

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starting with one from my now inactive prompt blog, @nighttimelights-prompted. The original ask: _...If you don't do reapertale then could you have the immortal human who was friends with Toriel, Asgore and/or grillby before the war and they are finally reunited after years apart thinking the other died.)_
> 
> Reapertale isn't as much my thing, so I went with the latter, and made it a Reader x UT Grillby scenario. And [here's some music for setting the scene](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5znVj9VUnGI&feature=youtu.be), if you're so inclined! <3

Your fingers danced at ease over the keys of the grand piano positioned on the unobtrusive corner stage. A melancholy sweet jazz tune hummed from the strings under the open lid, filling the bar you owned with a warm and welcoming atmosphere.

The stools of the bar were tucked neatly under the hanging lip of the dark stone of its counter, and the chairs of the open tables rested neatly upside-down on top of the tables they belonged to. The dark wood of the booth tables gleamed under the low light coming from only the stage you played on and the warm back lighting of the bar itself. The lights there were never out, you saw to that. They hadn’t been extinguished since that night nearly 200 years ago now…

The night that the monsters had been driven from their last bastion at the base of the mountain your town called its home.

The echo of the hoarse voice you had ended the night with slid through your throat, and you closed your eyes as your soul hitched deep within your chest. The night had been spent slipping through the underbrush, rescuing human allies that had nearly been burnt alive by the mages’ forces, heading off what soldiers you could with false directions and traps, trying to buy as much time as you could for your nonhuman friends - for those that had become your family over so many years.

At that point, it had truly only been a matter of buying them time, after the ongoing slaughter that had only worsened over time… and bound to this mountain as you were, having tied your soul to it through love of the area and passionate intent to protect those who cared for it and made it their home as you did, you had nothing but time.

If only you had been able to give it all to them.

Your closest human friends had long since passed on, and you had little hope that your monster friends had survived. The mages had sealed them deep within the mountain, but you knew the kindness and compassion of their souls were infinitely fragile in the face of that kind of despair.

Your fingers faltered for a moment.

Another child had gone missing a month ago. They never returned… you did what you could for the humans who remained by this mountain, providing shelter, upholding the knowledge and memory of the monsters for those who cared to hear it, tending your bar as a haven, as a rallying point for community and strength in soul.

But by the stars, did you miss the firey man you had first built this bar with.

You missed the way his flames would crackle in that certain way when he laughed; the way the rich, deep tone of his voice always able to hush a room when he cared to make his stories heard; the way his deft hands would flip shakers and bottles and catch them just as smoothly; the way the quirk of his brow could tell you all you needed to know about a patron.

The lights behind the bar, lit by his own flame, had gone out the same night those mages had sealed them all within the mountain.

Your eyes opened and you looked towards the exposed beams of the ceiling, letting the music pour out of you. To this day, you had only time, and it was a few hours after your closing time… barely an hour from dawn, as such.

Sleep wasn’t coming for you this morning, you knew. The tension hadn’t left the curve of your spine since the afternoon; your access to magic was limited, only stronger when dealing with people and souls and reading their intentions, stronger when handling matters of music and expression and the sharing of good times. Even still, both magic and baser instinct deep within you felt that something was different today. Never mind the normal patrons not having heard of any disturbances, or the news not having come up with something else…

A sigh slipped past your lips. You hadn’t stopped playing, the music from the piano soothing your soul as the faces of your old friends slipped through your memory.

The white fur of the monarchs themselves, crushing you happily in their customary hugs when you visited them in the early afternoon with a meal to brighten the growing weariness. The stark bone of the head scientist, catching the light of the bar in an ethereal and dark way that matched the wicked grin that would split across his face whenever an elaborately outlaid teasing wordplay hit the target of his words - often you, you recalled with a huff and a soft grin. The bright glow of the radiant flickers of flame that sparked from that flaming bartender’s arms as he pushed his sleeves up his biceps to haul a barrel of liquor up from the basement.

Stars, you couldn’t get him out of your mind tonight. Your soul was growing tighter and tighter - you may not have been able to see it since the monsters were sealed away, but that was probably for the best. It had taken everything you had to not fall apart at the loss of them - at the loss of him…

“Grillby,” you sighed.

There was a knock on the door.

A tentative stutter, and then a sharper, firm rap.

Your fingers came to a short stop.

Your chest still felt tight, and your brow furrowed slightly. The town knew you as a safe haven that no one dared to outright cross, and knew you’d help those who truly needed it, whatever the hour may be… perhaps your gut had been right, and there was something off about tonight.

“Coming,” you called out as you stepped from the worn leather bench. The lights you left low as they were, not feeling up to blinding yourself or your visitor for the sake of clarity.

Quick work was made of the latches, and you began speaking before you had fully opened the door.

“What seems to be the matter-”

Your voice died in the light you were greeted with.

Filling the doorway as he always had, dressed a nearly-modern bartending outfit, frozen with one hand up from his knocking, was your dearest friend, the bar’s once co-owner, the monster you had fallen in love with without ever having been able to act upon it.

Your name fell from his mouth in a hoarse whisper at the same you spoke his.

Neither of you moved for a moment longer.

Then, as one, you grabbed him in a desperate embrace as he swept his arms around you.

“How are you- no, surely - it - I thought-” you stammered into his chest as you tightened your arms around him, not fully believing the broad chest you were flush against, even with his impossibly gentle heat quickly seeping through to the very core of you.

“You’re alive, how, how can it be,” he murmured at the same time. His voice was the same rough baritone you remembered, but it put every dear memory you had to shame. He crackled as he held you closer, dipping his head down to rest his head atop yours.

You felt the tears welling in your eyes as the heat built painfully in your cheeks, not from his fire but from every cracking, needle-sharp emotion that was shooting through you. You pulled your head away, catching his gaze immediately, trying to find the words.

“I’m… Grillby, how are you here? I’d say I was dreaming, but I would have fallen asleep at the piano and the groan of the keys would surely have woken me up by now,” you laughed, a little helplessly, a little lost, and a little utterly overwhelmed.

His hand brushed against the base of your neck. “The barrier… it broke,” he said, disbelief even in his own voice.

You weren’t quite sure if it was disbelief in the barrier being gone, or in being here with you.

“Oh, stars - Grillby, please, please come in-” you pulled back with a start, realizing the chill night air was still brushing over and around you both standing in the threshold. Pride rose in you at how steady your steps were as you moved back and grasped his hand, pulling him gently in so you could bump the door shut. You made your way to the bar with him in easy tow, insisting he sit down on a stool.

He did so, disbelief still clear in his flames as his hands gently met the stone of the bartop, almost reverent in the way they skimmed over its polished surface.

“It hasn’t changed,” he murmured. Your soul thrummed and ached all at once at the pained joy in his rough voice.

You were already behind the bar, your hands pulling out a glass, a dark chilled stone, and a deeply amber bottle of a special whiskey from the shelf highest along the wall. The glass of the bottle shone, despite it being one you hadn’t opened in nearly a century.

“I never wanted it to,” you replied softly. Then, despite yourself, you grinned as you opened the bottle. “Well, though, I’ll admit - modern electricity and plumbing certainly made a few things easier in the back.”

He laughed at that, the sound startled out of him and spreading the grin on your face with the warmth of it, with the warmth of him, a warmth you hadn’t felt all these years.

His laughter quieted as you set the glass in front of him, swirling enticingly with the amber liquid you had poured for him. His hand plucked the glass up in a motion so natural, it matched the easy way you leaned forward on your side of the bar.

He lifted it to eye level. The deep golden lights that served as his eyes studied it for only a moment before widening and flickering to you. “Surely, this isn’t…?”

Your smile turned wistful, and you nodded. “The last batch of whiskey we ever prepared,” you confirmed.

He was frozen in place, the term almost not fitting for the gentle way his flames danced low and close to him. At last, eyes seeming to close, he took a sip. The line in his shoulders relaxed, and he sighed the tiniest, lowest breath. The glass hung in front of him, held just firmly enough in his easy grip as the moment hung on.

The next moment, he opened his eyes, and he leaned forward. You stayed still as his fingers brushed your cheek, slowing as his thumb wiped at the corner of your eyes.

The smallest hiss could be heard as he dried the streak of tears that had fallen down the curve of your face.

Your hand lifted and rested over his still cupping your cheek. Your throat was tight, almost too tight too speak.

“Welcome home, Grillby.”

He leaned over the bar, his face so terribly close to yours as he pressed his forehead against yours. His voice was nearly too rough to understand as he whispered a reply.

“… I’m home.”


	2. xUS Papyrus - Help In a Dark Place

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another one from my old @nighttimelights-prompted blog! The request: _Can I get some US!Papyrus and reader fluff, after he walks in on the reader in the middle of a bad panic attack?_

The slim phone Alphys had rigged for him hadn’t made a sound for a few hours. Stretch flipped it idly in his hand, his bones clacking against the sturdy plastic rhythmically as he stared at the dark screen each twist of the phone. Smoke slipped from between his teeth, past the clove cigarette lazily hanging from his mouth.

Normally, he’d already be over at your place by now; it was Friday, nearly 10pm, and you’d have been back from work for at least an hour, sending him the go-ahead to come over… but tonight he hadn’t heard from you, not even a quick stray response to the ancient meme he had dug up and sent to you earlier. His soul was a little tight as worry pooled in his chest - he’d been working to not start assuming the worst case scenario since coming to the surface - or, at least since he first met you and you had gotten close, stars bless your steady hand and sweet, funny, calming words that drew so much reason in those hard nights - but..

Well, he could at least check in on you.

It was a short step through the clinging darkness before he landed in front of your door - he let the cigarette drop in the void, knowing better than to get caught by your landlord with it in front of your place. He rapped his knuckles on the door, raising his voice at the same time, the gravelly pitch to his voice one he knew you loved. “knock knock,” he said.

His knuckles rested on the cool wood of your door as he waited. You had a small space, and the walls were thin. You’d hear him, so he was okay with waiting for you to come and reply.

Well, that was if you  _ would  _ reply.

He swallowed with a throat he didn’t have. “knock knock,” he tried one more time.

Quiet.

In truth, he should have probably waited longer than the second and a half he allowed before cutting through the void to step inside, but instinct told him it wouldn’t matter. Instinct had kept him mostly living this long, so he was inclined to listen.

Your living room and kitchen were lit, and before he had a moment longer to scan, the microwave beeped shrilly - something in there had been left, unclaimed. His gaze scanned the familar room as he crossed it in his usual easy pace - you hated that sound, and would always run to cut it off - but you weren’t in here. Your hoodie had been tossed over the couch, your shoes toed off at the door - his fingers met the button of the microwave’s latch as his mind raced.

As his fingers grazed against the mug inside, he realized that it was cold.

A swear crossed his tongue in a whisper before he heard the noise - something in your room had moved, falling with a thump.

He was already in there before the moment passed.

You were pressed against the side of your bed, knees drawn to your chest, your blankets drug mostly off the bed and clenched in your shaking hands as you stared at them. No, past the material, Stretch immediately recognized, your eyes wide and unfocused. Your laptop lay haphazardly upside-down near you - where it had fallen.

He approached carefully, humming softly in a way that buzzed through his bones, a low sound he didn’t realize he made so often until you had brought up how much you loved it.

You started, but didn’t lift your gaze.

“hey there sweetheart,” Stretch said, his voice low and soft. He was already on your level when he reached you, bent down on a knee, careful to not crowd you.

Your knuckles went whiter, your breath stuttering as you opened your mouth once, twice, then bit your lip and clenched your eyes shut.

Stretch gently laid his hands over yours. His thumbs stroked your knuckles, trying to smooth the tension there as he took care let let his chest rise and fall in steady breaths for you.

“it’s going to be okay. i’m here, i’ve got you,” he said to you. “you’re safe. we’re in your room, just us.” he felt the tension in your hands slacken a little, and the corners of his mouth picked up. “there you go, honey. that’s it. just one thing at a time, that’s all we have to do. focus on me, on my chest, yeah?”

Your hands, still shaking, slipped over to grasp at his. He held them securely in return as you clenched your grip - then nodded, almost imperceptibly. Your eyes focused on him, on the strings of his hoodie.

So quietly, “I’m s-sorry, I’m so - I’m sorry, I’m sorry,” you tried to say, your words halting, too quick, too short.

He hummed again, bending down just slightly to press his forehead to yours. “shhhh, there’s nothing to be sorry for. all i see here is a cute human doing their best, right? just working on taking those deep breaths…”

You nearly hiccupped in inhalation, but slowly, unsteadily, you matched Stretch’s breathing. The corners of his eyesockets were tight as he continued making a steady pace in breath for you, murmuring words of encouragement.

Finally, finally, you looked up at him. Exhaustion lined your eyes, and your hands still trembled in his, but you were breathing normally once more.

Just for him, you smiled. It was small, and shaky, and full of so much gratitude that he felt winded.

“Stretch… I’m sor-” you stopped yourself at the knowing quirk to his brow bone. Your smile turned a little sheepish, but you took a deep breath and squeezed his hands. “Thank… thank you,” you said instead.

He grinned at you and lifted your hands to press a kiss on your fingers, drawing a gentle sigh from you and a red tint to your cheeks. “i’ve got you, honey. stars know you’ve got me - like hell i’d want to be anywhere else but by your side.”

You stared up at him, a wave of emotions rolling through your expression for just a moment, before you shifted to quickly wrap your arms around his neck. Your reply was muffled and lost in the soft honey-and-clove scent of his sweater, and he chuckled as you ended up pulling him down and forward. He looped his arms around you, pulling you easily around to settle in his lap.

“yeah, i love you even when i don’t have a star’s clue as to what you’re saying down there.”

A warm orange glow wrapped around the blanket you had dropped, and it slipped to tuck around the two of you without Stretch having to let go of you. His phone slipped out of his pocket with the same glow, hung in the air for a moment as he concentrated - then he let it drop onto the bed behind you as laidback, calming music started playing at a low volume from it.

You moved your head, pressing your cheek to his collarbone. He hummed again. You nestled closer to him, and he swore he could feel the pulse of your soul pressed so close to him as you did so.

You hummed, your own little low tone that brought a softer turn to his grin and a slight orange dusting to his cheeks. He ran his hand along your back, drawing absent-minded designs along the line of your spine as he held you secure and close.

Your body relaxed against his, and a small, relieved sigh left you.

“I said… I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else but by your side, either.”


	3. xUF Sans - Lick the Fang

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Also from my @nighttimelights-prompted blog. The request: _Ok, three different things, but all the same pairing: What if UF!Sans's crush just came up and sat on his lap for no apparent reason while they were watching TV or a movie? What if said crush mentions at one point (probably in response to something on the TV) that they find fangs sexy? What if at some point after this (probably days to weeks later) said crush got drunk and LICKED UF!Sans' gold tooth. Just. Leaned over and licked it._
> 
> A head's up - this isn't really NSFW, but it does get a little steamy~
> 
> (Note: I'm not actively taking requests, ahaha. The first several chapters of this series of oneshots are just prompt responses I did when I actively ran that prompt blog that I wanted to collect in one place. <3)

Edge’s sharp footsteps, dulled only marginally by exhaustion, echoed into the kitchen as he climbed the stairs. The click of his door shutting for the night spread a wicked grin you knew that your crush would be proud of-

Ah, but he couldn’t be clued in yet.

So, wiping the devilish look off your face, you hooked your fingers around the cold bottles of hard mixed liquor and scooped up the bowl of popcorn you had just filled. Your hips swayed a little as you re-entered the living room, and it was with a low burning in your gut that you pretended to not notice the crimson eyelights that quickly slipped over your form as you approached.

You cocked your hip to rest the popcorn on and passed Red a bottle of your shared favorite drink. The flush of what you had already consumed settled a flush to your cheeks, pleasant, tipsy, just shy of hammered. It was a level you had been to with Red on more than a dozen occasions already, one that you matched well with one another.

Mettaton struck yet another pose in the forefront of the movie’s camera focus as an extremely loud saxophone picked up and blasted over the sound system. Red rolled his eyes, and your mind strayed for a moment in recollection.

_ “… whatcha doin’ there, sweetheart?” Red’s voice was a cracked growl in your ear, a mix between his normal lazy tone and a sudden effort to play it cool and casually flirty that crashed just a little. You had plopped yourself in his lap, an arm casually looping around his shoulders to steady yourself. _

_ You shrugged and waggled your brow at him. “What, don’t you always say that you’ve got the best seat in the house?” _

_ You were teasing him, and he knew it. He rolled his eyes, a smirk picking up on his face to fight the crimson tint to his cheekbones. “not what i meant, but i ain’t gonna complain, now am i?” _

_ It was your turn to roll your eyes, but a little thrill ran through you as his broad hand skated over the slip of skin that had been revealed as your shirt pulled up. “Besides, you stole my spot.” _

_ “what, it was warm.” _

_ “That’s ‘cuz I’ve got a hot ass.” _

_ He nearly choked on nothing at all. You cracked up immediately, bending over yourself as the laughter poured out of you and he tried to recover, your new posture conveniently covering up the way the blood rushed up to your face at your own words. _

_ Red settled on grumbling something about you being the dusting of him, and you nudged him in the ribs as the TV flashed over to another Mettaton ad about monster-enhancing products. _

_ “Sorry, sorry - not sorry,” you said with a wink to rival his own. He just quirked a browbone at you and you felt a hand shove lightly at your head. “C’mon, no, I’m sorry. Let’s watch - well, an ad about bone polish now, I guess? What, is that what you use on your teeth or something?” _

_ It was his turn to crack up. _

_ “why the fuck would i want to shine up my teeth?” he managed to get out between struggling for air you had a distinct feeling he didn’t really need. _

_ You fell back against him, harder than necessary, eliciting a grunt you appreciated a little too much. “Hey man, I dunno, I dunno how you work, maybe you want to get your fangs extra sexy or something-” _

_ You froze at the same time his laughter cut off. _

_ It was far too late to hope he didn’t notice it. Your eyes shut in preparation for whatever consequences you were damn sure about to face. _

_ A shiver rolled down your spine as he blew a puff of air onto your ear, chuckling at your response. “so, y’think my fangs are sexy, sweetheart?” _

The fuck hadn’t let up on teasing you for the better part of a week after that. You had ended up shoving off his lap that night not long after, trying to get a grip on your mortification amongst his way-too-pleased jabs at your accidental admission. You had both been toeing the line of attraction for a couple months now, and that sort of thing was fuel for a fire that both of you were a little too clearly starting to feel the everyday effects of.

It was just a matter of who would be the first to give in, now.

Well, it’d been another couple weeks since that fang comment, and damn if you didn’t want to get him riled up and caving right into you… It was a win-win situation, either way, but victory would taste that much sweeter if he was the one to really give in first.

You shook your head minutely as you dragged your slightly alcohol-hazy focus back into the present moment. Red was looking at you now, a browbone raised.

“So the edgelord’s off to bed then?” You asked, tone conversational as you glanced upstairs.

Red shrugged. “yeah, somethin’ about pickin’ a fight with Undyne early tomorrow morning to settle some claim about cooler armor.”

You chuckled. “So, at 4am.”

Red grinned. “you know it.” He popped off the cap of his bottle with his thumb, the fact that it wasn’t even a screw top not bothering him one bit. He pat the back of the couch where his arm had stretched out. You took him up on the invitation and fell onto the couch, settling easily enough in a way that you were almost draped against his chest. You felt his breath hitch, but he took a smooth sip of his drink anyways, kicking up one foot to cross over his opposite knee.

You offered him the popcorn, taking a few swigs of your own drink.

The warm buzz of the monster-brewed and certainly monster-strength drink spun its way through you, making you grin despite the terrible Mettaton flick both of you were too lazy - or too distracted - to change.

A minute passed without you catching a word that was said by the flamboyant four-armed robot on the screen, and you found your gaze wandering to Red. He definitely seemed to be watching the TV, not paying attention to the way you had absently started observing him. You were on his left side, and it wasn’t long before the glint of his golden tooth caught your gaze longer than anything else. It was a deep, deep gold, one that always made you feel like it was absolutely real, not just a faux plating… It caught the purple and red and orange of the scene playing out on the TV, glittering and glinting dangerously in his usual grin, only getting more entrancing as you drew closer…

You licked it.

Honestly, you should’ve probably frozen as soon as you realized you had done it - but a pleased grin spread on your face first, the heated flush of alcohol running through your cheeks the only reason you hadn’t clearly blushed immediately.

No, though, it wasn’t until a stolen 2 seconds later, when Red’s arm was suddenly looped around your waist, broad hand firm at your hip, when it really set in what you had just done.

Your mouth opened, under the assumption a reason would come out-

It didn’t. You closed it again, and your gaze met Red’s.

You shuddered at the impossibly bright red his eyelights had shrunk to.

“… sweetheart,” he said. His voice was too easy, too calm.

Stars, did you want to hear that voice lose its cool.

“Yeah, Red?” You replied. Your voice was just on the edge of breathless. Your smile had turned back to that wicked one from barely 5 minutes ago, and you felt your eyes lid just a little. His other hand twitched at its place hanging lazily from the back of the couch above where he had set the popcorn.

“… didya just lick my tooth?” It wasn’t much of a question. You decided you quite liked the way his hand clenched tighter at your hip, edging on rough.

Without waiting, you shifted and swung your leg over his lap.

Straddling him, his left arm still looped around your waist, you set your hands behind his neck and leaned in.

“So what if I did? You gonna do somethin’ about it?”

He inhaled sharply.

Your grin widened. You had him now, you knew it-

“nah.”

… what.

“just meant what i said, sweetheart.”

Woops, you hadn’t realized you said that out loud. You eyed Red, not having moved from the unapologetically provocative position you had set yourself in. His eyes had closed and his grin was lazy, the very tooth you just fucking licked glinting just as lazily. You didn’t know how he did it, really. It drove you up a wall-

Which, coincidentally was right where you wanted to pinned right now, the flush and honesty of the alcohol conveniently reminded you.

Your eyes narrowed. He opened one eye to meet your gaze.

His grin twisted just a fraction, and you caught the betrayal of a smirk in that moment.

“… You  _ little shit _ ,” you breathed out.

His smirk stayed this time. “eh, i’d say i’m pretty big, actually, though ‘m not one to brag.”

You closed your eyes and took a deep breath. Goddamn him and his being way too good with-

“what, cat got your tongue now, hot stuff?” he questioned. You realized finally that his arm was still looped around you, and his fingers were ghosting along the edge of your shirt. “have i got you seeing red, or-”

You kissed him.

You kissed him  _ hard _ .

Your fingers wound in the enormous fluff of his hood’s edge, providing the perfect grip point for you to drag him closer to you as you pressed yourself against him, the line of your body conforming to his. Your eyes had immediately closed as you pushed towards him, and you hadn’t met the smooth line of his teeth as you had half-expected - it was as if he had lips of his own, and though they had very little give of their own, they were moving as smoothly as they could when he talked-

More importantly, they were moving  _ against you _ , dragging you deeper into the kiss.

Whatever lines you had each been toeing - perhaps a little more vigorously than you’d expected, but toeing nonetheless - had just been trampled over, torn down, forgotten in the dust. His arms wrapped around you and you felt a groan of relief, and appreciation, and - and gods, a groan of hunger run through him, vibrating through his ribs and against your chest and along your lips where you still kissed him, but stars you wanted more, needed more, and so your tongue darted out, running along the malleable bone of his lower lip-

His fingers raked down your back and you gasped, your mouth opening, and his teeth ran along your lip for a flash of a moment before his tongue met yours. The magic was smooth and strange against your tongue, but you felt invigorated by it, the faintest buzz of an almost static-like feeling striking a thrill through you as you tasted the faint hint of his drink still lingering on his tongue.

His hands drifted, one lowering to brush against your ass appreciatively before gripping it and pressing your hips just that little bit closer to him. His other hand moved to the back of your neck, his fingers slipping into the line of your hair and pulling just slightly, the faintest hint of pain not causing you any distress but pulling a soft gasp from you. You felt his lips curl into a smirk, and the heat pooling in you fanned into an open flame at that small quirk to his features.

A moment later, his fangs bit at your lower lip, teasing it just on the edge of painfully, and his hips rolled upwards. A hard, hot length in his pants ran between your legs, and you found yourself quite uncertain of what breathing entailed.

His chuckle was dark and had you grasping more firmly at his hood as he rolled his hips again. The hand at your ass pressed you downwards, and you could feel every inch of him as he moved against you.

“guess it ain’t a cat that’s got your tongue after all, is it?” he said, his words teasing against your lips.

“You gonna prove you’re more than just talk, Red?” You managed to whisper in rough reply. Your lips turned upward in a grin as you caught his eyes, mirroring in them the blatant, searing desire you felt burning its way through your every vein. His eyes narrowed at your lidded gaze and your obvious bait.

“trust me doll, you’re gonna be the one who can’t quiet down,” he replied. His hand still at the back of your neck gripped your hair more firmly and pulled - just hard enough to make you gasp and tilt your head, exposing your neck. The next moment his sharp teeth were dragging along the sensitive skin there, and you felt your breath hitch in your chest. Your hands finally let go of his hood, one opting to grip near his collarbone, the other wrapping around to the back of his next, clutching at his thick, exposed vertebrae.

He growled against your skin, sending a delighted shiver down your spine. You rolled your hips downward as he tasted you, once again feeling his hard length against you.

“Well, Red? Gonna follow through with that promise?” You spoke again, breathless and a little strained but pleased and more than a little eager as you felt him lift his mouth towards your ear, the feeling of a puff of his heated breath there doing strange things to the heat burning low in you.

The next moment his mouth was against yours, moving firmly, insistently, possessively, and you returned the kiss just as fiercely, your fingers dragging against his bones and his hand slipping to slowly feel the curve of your thigh.

He broke away for a moment, capturing your gaze with the glowing red of his eyelights.

“i don’t make promises, sweetheart… but this? this is goddamn fate, and i’ll have you screamin’ for your destiny.” All at once the world collapsed on itself into a desperate darkness, and the next moment you were in a room only lit by the moonlight slipping through the open blinds of a window. You fell backwards, landing on your back against a soft, worn mattress. Red held himself over you, his smirk spreading wider at the look of you laid below him, a dangerous and hungry edge to it that had you biting your lip and fighting the urge to squirm. “… so whaddya say, doll? wanna see where fate takes us?”

You lifted your hands from the bed, running them up and along his chest, making his eyelights go a little hazy and causing the smallest shudder to run along his form as you felt the curve of his broad, sturdy ribs, up to his collarbone, around his shoulders… until finally you wrapped your arms around his neck and pulled him down to you.

“I think I like my chances,” you said with your own smirk - and then you were pressing your lips to his, laughing against them once, breathless, as immediately one of his arms snaked around your waist and lifted your hips towards him as he pressed down and shifted his hips just right, effectively cutting you off as a moan escaped you. He grinned into your kiss before tilting his head, stealing your breath all over again as his mouth made it’s way down the line of your jaw, the curve of your neck, and lower still. 


	4. xUT Pap - A Chance Meeting in a Tea Shop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another one from my @nighttimelights-prompted blog! No request attached for this one - I wrote it after I got a very sweet and supportive message from someone who's a big fan of everyone's favorite spaghetti enthusiast. <3

You knew you had the music turned up a little too loud, but with it being the middle of the afternoon on a Tuesday you felt you could let yourself get away with it. It wasn’t anything disruptive, in any case - after all, you worked in a small boutique tea shop. The atmosphere wasn’t what one would immediately describe as ‘lively’.

But hey - it paid pretty well, the owner was sweet, and you got to be around the wonderful smell of a  _ staggering  _ variety of teas.

So you hummed along to the relaxing song that you had going currently, reaching up on tip toe on your stepladder to dust the higher shelves. With everything stocked, reorganized, deep-cleaned, and more, there wasn’t much else to do, provided you didn’t accidentally make a mess yourself.

“HELLO, HUMAN!”

You screamed as you startled, instinctively twisting to look towards the booming voice - which you immediately realized was a terrible decision, resulting in your weight shifting so that you were pulled off balance, causing the stepladder to tip over and send you falling towards the floor. You clenched your eyes shut as you prepared for the painful impact-

“OOP-!”

You were caught in an unyielding and suprisingly gentle pair of arms, which were attached to an equally unyielding body, that had just huffed out with relatively anticlimactic effort as you made impact.

You opened your eyes as you caught up to the fact that no further impact was coming.

“Oh god, thank you, I-  _ skeLETON THAT’S - YOU’RE A- er _ rrr I mean hellllllo, sir-!”

Your recovery was about as smooth as it could be, clearly.

You stared upwards at the face of both your downfall and savior - an incredibly bright, cheerful skeleton. Your face flushed, from both embarrassment and a flurry of not-quite-formed thoughts as you registered how effortlessly this skeleton was holding you, at the placement of his hands near your shoulder and behind your knees as he held you close in an absurdly perfect bridal style.

“HELLO IN RETURN, HUMAN! AGAIN! FOR THE SECOND TIME! YOU ARE DEFINITELY OBSERVANT, I MUST GIVE YOU THAT - I’VE HAD A FEW OTHER HUMANS IMMEDIATELY NOTE MY APPEARANCE IN SUCH A WAY, BUT YOU’VE DONE IT WITH THE COURTESY OF EVEN THANKING ME FOR  _ BEING _ A SKELETON FIRST!”

Your flush deepened.

“I mean - I’m sorry, I wasn’t - um. I didn’t mean to scream,” you managed to say, giving up on correcting him and instead half-remembering that you’re supposed to be an employee. And speaking of which - “Oh! Oh, I’m so sorry, you can - you can let me down now, I should be fine to stand!”

The skeleton’s brow drew downward for the first time, his expression creasing slightly in concern. “ARE YOU QUITE CERTAIN? YOU ARE DEFINITELY A PARAGON OF HUMANITY AND… STANDING-UP-NESS - ER, THAT IS TO SAY, I TRUST THAT YOU CAN STAND ON YOUR FEET, I THINK, BUT. WELL. YOU KNOW WHAT THEY SAY ABOUT ACTIONS VERSUS WORDS AND ALL THAT. AND I’LL ADMIT, FROM WHAT I’VE SEEN, I HAVE SOME RESERVATIONS ABOUT YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH GRAVITY. PARTICULARLY THE NOT SUCCUMBING TO IT PART. IMMEDIATELY. IN A… HORIZONTAL FASHION.”

Your hands were nearly covering your face, and your palms were close to combusting with the heat coming from your cheeks. Not only could you clearly not be trusted by this sweet, cute skeleton to stand, you -  _ wait _ ,  _ nope, what were those adjectives, stop that right there. _

_ “NoreallyI’mgoodIpromisepleasejustletmestandbeforeIdiethanks!” _

… You had to give him credit, he picked out your words at the lightning speed they flew out of you and immediately righted you and had you standing. You didn’t pull your hands from your face. You weren’t quite sure you ever would, really.

“OKAY, OKAY, YES THERE- I - HUMANS CAN DIE FROM NOT STANDING?? DOES THAT APPLY TO MONSTERS TOO? I MEAN, I MAKE A POINT TO STAND A LOT, I’M QUITE THE EXPERT, BUT I’LL REALLY HAVE TO PASS THAT INFORMATION ON TO SANS, MAYBE THAT’LL GET HIM MOVING A LITTLE FASTER IN THE MORNINGS - OR AFTERNOONS, OR, YOU KNOW, EVER,” the skeleton said. He too was rambling, and to your confusion his cheekbones were glowing a faint orange as he quickly pulled his gloved hands away from you in anxious worry, before reaching out again, pausing, patting the air barely an inch above your shoulder, then fluttering them sort of uselessly.

He inhaled, somehow, then looked away as if catching onto himself. He cleared his throat then, again  _ somehow _ , and looked to you with a somewhat sheepish tilt to his bright smile.

“IN… ANY CASE! ARE YOU ALRIGHT?”

You nodded quickly - you absolutely were. Too okay, in fact. Despite your inclination to continue protecting the surrounding air from your blush, you lifted your own hands and waved them in front of you insistently.

“Yes, yes, of course! Thank you so much for catching me, I would’ve been having a really hard time otherwise,” you said, laughter bubbling out of you in polite amiability and ongoing embarassment. “I didn’t mean to trouble you like that - please, how can I help you today?”

He brightened at that, the strange glow still glimmering beneath his eyesockets as he straightened a little. “YES, OF COURSE! YOU ARE VERY KIND, HUMAN - I AM IN FACT NEED OF YOUR HELP, YOUR TEA-ORIENTED MASTERY IS IN FACT WHAT I MOST DESIRE! YOU SEE, I, THE GREAT PAPYRUS-” He struck a pose at that, a cheesy and yet dashing pose that you could imagine any knight-in-shining-armor ready to strike when ready to charge into danger. You pressed a hand to your mouth, covering a smile that was widening in a very, very genuine way. “-I HAVE BEEN HIRED TO BE A PERSONAL GUARD TO A DEAR FRIEND OF MINE, HIRED BY THEIR FATHER IN FACT, WHO IS SOMEONE WHO MAY OR MAY NOT LIKE TEA. A LOT. TO AN OBSESSIVE LEVEL, REALLY. YOU KNOW, AS HAPPENS. IN ANY CASE, I WANT TO BE A GOOD INFLUENCE AS WELL AS A GOOD GUARD, AND SHOW THAT I REALLY KNOW WHAT IS UP! AND WHAT IS EVEN HIGHER, IF POSSIBLE!”

“Wow, I… really admire that dedication, that’s - you’re amazing, Papyrus,” you said, returning his bright smile. Something about even just his  _ presence _ was making you happy - but maybe that was his attitude… and confidence. And incredible posing skills.

The glow on his cheeks brightened at your words. He laughed, a sound that filled you further with warmth even as it stuttered as he glanced from side to side. “O-OH, OF COURSE, HUMAN! I AM GREAT, AFTER ALL, AND AMAZING FALLS UNDER THAT SORT OF… GREAT… UMBRELLA! YES.”

His gloved hand went to rub at his vertebrae, and you decided to be merciful. “So! You’d like to learn more about tea, then? And perhaps we could set you up with a few options to bring with you your first day, really show them that you know what’s up with tea?” You offered with a smile, sweeping a hand towards the beautifully full shelves of your store, teeming with variety and potential combinations.

“WOWIE, WOULD I! I KNEW THIS WAS THE RIGHT PLACE TO GO - IT WAS DEFINITELY MY SOUL THAT LED ME HERE! AND MY PHONE. BUT MY SOUL HAPPENED TO DEFINITELY CONFIRM THE VERY HANDY HINTS PROVIDED BY MY PHONE!” He nodded sagely as his gaze went to the shelves. He then turned his attention back to you, his expression lighting up once more, tinged with a mischievous excitement. The next moment he was bowing ostentatiously, and he looked up from it to wink at you… audibly. “LEAD THE WAY, TEAMASTER! I AWAIT YOUR LEAFY-WATER WISDOM!”

You couldn’t help the return of your blush as you slapped a hand over your mouth to keep from laughing. He rose with a cheeky tilt to his smile, a twinkle in his eye telling you that he wasn’t entirely unaware of what he was doing.

Your mind made up, you reached out and slipped your hand into his and tugged him further along the closest wall. “Alright then, Great Papyrus,” you said, looking back at his orange-dusted beaming face with a mischievous smile of your own. “Let’s see if you’re ready for the great secrets of tea.”


	5. x UF Sans - Reaching the Surface

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From my @nighttimelights-prompted blog. The request: _(So Underfell Sans (the grumpy, cold and agressive version) and the reader get out of the Underground. The night falls, and she convinces him to come with her, and she takes him to a really good spot to see the stars he have never seen before. He have a crush on her and maybe let the cold facade down for once. I don't know if it would make a great story, take liberties if it's too restrictive, but have fun writing this !You're talentend enough to make it works, anyway ! Take care of yourself <3_
> 
> ( & general reminder - I'm not taking prompts/requests currently! But your comments always help keep me inspired and finding the drive to write more, so I'd love to hear from you if you enjoy any of these~)

Your toes dug lightly at the edge of the cliffside you had all been gazing over. The sun had now all but set, the distant city already glowing with the lights of the night. The others had quickly separated, not comfortable with the close company right now, but a begrudging promise to meet back here to form a plan to approach the humans lingering in the air.

You took a deep breath, letting the cooling fresh air of the mountainside fill your lungs as your eyes drifted shut. You hadn’t fully realized just how much you missed it, all those months spent in the caves of the Underground filled only with air so stagnant and dank…

“you humans’ve been pretty fuckin’ spoiled.”

A chuckle escaped you as you opened your eyes and turned your head. Sans stood at your side, a scowl on his face, his gold tooth catching the last of the lingering dusk light. Despite his words, his eyelights showed just a measure of softness that you had only caught on the rarest occasion in the Underground.

“Yeah. Seems we take a lot more for granted than we’d ever admit.”

He scoffed, not meeting your gaze, instead continuing to stare out over the mountainside. His arm nearly brushed yours with how close he stood, and you regarded him carefully for another minute, a now well-recognizable flush creeping up your cheeks.

Finally, his gaze flickered to you. “whatcha fuckin’ starin’ at, ya want somethin’ to-”

Your arm looped through his and you turned away, cutting him off as he grunted in surprise.

“C’mon, I wanna show you something.”

You didn’t leave room for argument as you set a steady pace, trying to fight the grin pulling at your face, trying even harder to ignore the excited flutter of your stomach as your plan hatched.

“hey, ya don’t have to try ‘n pull my arm off,” Sans grumbled as he followed suit, surprisingly raising little other issue with your sudden insistence. His words were more than a little half-hearted, and you glanced at him from the half-step lead you had as you made your way up a lightly-worn path, venturing a little further yet up the mountain.

“What if I need a  _ hand  _ though? Gotta have a little help to show you this,” you shot back at him, your blush rising.

His eyesockets widened for a split moment before his grin - his real grin, something you could only ever pull out of him in the rarest circumstances previously - spread across his face. It still hinted of danger and dark promises, but in a way that sent the excitement bubbling in you into more of a frenzy.

“if ya’ve got a  _ bone  _ to pick with someone, sure,” he replied without missing a further beat, his cocky and mischievous look suiting him far too well. “it’d be  _ humerus _ . i think  _ tibia  _ the source of another human’s fuckin’ shock and awe would be pretty satisfying-”

You laughed openly at his heavy wordplay as you pulled him above the treeline once again, a clearing of soft grass and late summer flowers tickling your calves as you whirled around to face him again. You pressed close, your free arm shifting so you could grip his upper arm with a brightening smile. His grin faltered for just a moment as his cheekbones stained a softly glowing crimson.

“The only one I want awed right now is you, Sans,” you whispered. You were so close now that his hips brushed against yours, that you swore you could feel the electric energy of his blush. It took everything in you to not throw caution to the wind and close the last of the distance between your faces.

Sans managed to find his words again, his voice going a little raw with how low and quiet it dipped. “w-what’re ya talkin’ about, sweetheart-”

You squeezed his arm one last time before spinning him away from you, away from the upwards slope of the mountain, back over the view you now stood over - and under.

Sans went completely still as he caught sight of the crystal-clear night stretching over him, the dim lights of the city far to your side now not able to drown out the glittering expanse of stars and the cloudy edges of the galaxy itself shining above you.

You remained quiet as you took in the view for a moment, relief and joy swelling in you as in this still moment away from the others, away from the demands, from the excitement - you finally let yourself realize that you were  _ free _ .

And… more importantly… that  _ he  _ was free with you.

Your face tilted once again as you looked towards Sans, shifting gently so you could stand at his side, your arms still entwined. Your breath left you as you caught sight of his face.

Red streaks of liquid magic were streaming from the corner of his eyesockets, his face upturned towards the open sky with a vulnerable, matching openness you had never seen before.

Chest constricting painfully, you couldn’t find any words. You didn’t think you wanted to, really, as the wetness built at your own eyes.

Sans shifted at last, only the barest of movements as the arm you held moved and his hand caught yours. His fingers intertwined with yours, gripping just a little too tight.

You returned his grip as you carefully, slowly leaned against him, your face turning back up towards the sky as well. 


	6. x UF Grillby - Winding Down

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another request from my now-hiatused @nighttimelights-prompted blog: _First off: your writing is legit awesome. Second, whenever you feel like it, maybe something about UF Grillby reacting to his s/o, one night after a rough day at the bar, just showering him in gentle, genuine affection? Compliments, cuddling, sweet "i love yous" and such. Thanks for reading my silly prompt, again your writing is awesome! Purple Flame Man needs more love! XD_

You had felt the quiet roiling fury and frustration of Grillby’s soul even from your apartment miles away from his bar. Your hands were donning your coat before you had a second thought - it had been a long time since Grillby had been like this, and ego be damned - you were going to be there for him if…

… You paused. No, no, you had a better idea, upon that second thought… one you think would be much better for him in the long run. He didn’t need to get the urge to dust a monster for threatening you should you end up snapping back at their rude demeanor… again.

So a few hours later, at a time so late in the night that it was dangerously close to better being deemed the early hours of the morning, you heard Grillby’s door click open and slam shut. The rush of heat was immediate - but you had planned for that, and were dressed in far lighter clothes than the outside weather would call for. You had also planned for the sudden quiet from him, cut off mid-roaring crackle, as he registered another presence in his apartment, and before he could gleam further information-

“Hey there, Grill,” you greeted, stepping immediately into view, your voice soft and your expression knowing. He sighed at the sight of you, and you felt a brush of his energy by your soul as he recognized your presence the moment before he even caught sight of you.

“… Hello, my dear. What are you doing here?” He said, striding over to you. The tension in his shoulders was obvious, even as his anger tempered marginally at greeting you. His arm circled your waist and he leaned down, immediately claiming your lips in a kiss, his burning temperature just shy of pain, causing you to sigh into him and press into his hold a little more firmly despite yourself. 

His chuckle buzzed against your lips, doing terribly wonderful things to your core even as he pulled away, his one arm still around your waist, the other lifting so his hand could lift to your chin.

“… Not that I mind, of course,” he continued, his voice decidedly lower.

You laughed - a little breathlessly - and shook your head. “Well, being greeted like that is never a deterrent,” you said, a mischievous tilt to your expression. You pressed a hand to his chest then, willing yourself to push back the desire a little to better attend to your original intentions. “But no, I wanted… to do a little something for you,” you said, your tone softer once again, a smile on your face.

Grillby’s expression shifted, a flaming violet brow quirking upward as he considered you… then followed your gaze as you looked back towards his impeccably crafted stone table. You had laid out drinks, including a particular blend of whiskey you knew he was fond of, accompanied by a favorite meal of his that he himself had taught you how to cook.

“… Well, I know I’m certainly not in any sort of line with you in terms of cooking… but I thought with how I felt your day seemed to go-”

“It’s perfect.”

Grillby’s words cut you off as you looked back up to him, your cheeks flushing. He was looking back down at you - there was no smile on his face, but there was something painfully, beautifully intense in the white-hot glow of his eyes as he held you closer yet.

“… Come on, before it gets cold,” you replied softly, catching his hand at your chin to press a small kiss to it.

You ate in relative silence, a comfortable peace coming over you both as you chose a soft, instrumental playlist to let play in the background. He set down his silverware as he finished and leaned back in his chair, his legs stretching out, brushing against yours as he lifted his whiskey to his mouth. His eyes leveled on you again, and you leaned back and lifted your drink in turn as you returned his gaze.

“If you’d like to talk about it, I’m here for you,” you offered as he took a sip. It was an offer you had made before, and meant just as genuinely then.

He continued looking at you, then finally sighed and ran a hand through the flames flaring over his head. He scowled as he focused on his whiskey.

“My dear, it is nothing I wish for you to be concerned over. Simply… ongoing frustration with a certain status of things.”

You leaned forward, your hands near his. “That’s a terrible argument, and you know it. My concern is for you, so that would only naturally extend. I’m never burdened by knowing what matters to you.”

“For a human, you’re incredibly quick on your feet.”

“I’ll take that as the well-meant compliment it was for no doubt the dozenth time. And my statement still stands.”

His gaze shifted to you, catching the soft grin on your face. He huffed, the sound half a laugh, half something of disgust at whatever was running through his mind.

“Very well, then.”

Without ceremony, he stood and in the same motion swept you out of your chair and into his arms. You, admittedly, squeaked, which led to a devilish twist in his otherwise stoic expression. Your arms had looped around his neck, so you pulled yourself just a little closer, leading to a thrill of warmth near your soul as his responded to your actions. You smiled, pressing a kiss to his neck.

He hummed, a low rumbling sound that you could feel throughout his body. Now in his bedroom, you felt him shift to remove his shoes without letting you go. He sat down in his enormous bed then, the pristine comforter barely budging as he did so - you knew from experience it was weighted, lined with a special material that both allowed air through while retaining heat. Pillows shifted behind you both as he leaned back, releasing you just enough to where you could lay slightly over him, slightly alongside him.

One arm held you close, the other released you in favor of his hand roaming to your hair, twisting it in his hands, lending a particularly soft curl to the locks he twirled absently around his fingers.

“… The human official returned today, saying they were going to reject my filing for their absurd liquor-brewing laws. Apparently, they cannot trust the quality or purity of something ‘hand-brewed by a monster’,” he sneered. You felt the anger rising in him again, his heat flaring just slightly with it.

“We’ll appeal it,” you said softly. You knew he wasn’t a fan of vague sympathetic apologies. Instead your head rested near his shoulder, your hand smoothing out gently over his chest, your thumb brushing in a gentle, reassuring motion. “I’ll appeal it. I may have a connection that could help us - you,” you said, correcting yourself as casually as you could, hoping the heat of your cheeks would be hidden amongst the ambient heat of him.

Grillby was quiet for a moment, his hand suddenly still. “… us,” he said, repeating your word back at you.

You didn’t say anything.

“…  _ us _ ,” he repeated. His hand tilted your chin upwards, gently forcing you to look at him. His gaze captured yours, and you felt your soul tighten in your chest at the bright, unmistakeable burning of his flames. His voice was quiet, a rough, low, serious crackle that pierced straight through you. “My dear. Do you truly…?”

You weren’t sure you were breathing properly, but you found your voice. “I love you,” you replied. “I know that. You know that. My  _ soul  _ knows that…”

It throbbed happily in your chest at your words, and you felt Grillby’s energy brush against you again.

You continued, “… and, well, I think  _ your  _ soul knows that, Grill. I don’t - nothing has to change. But I love you. I love your sharp mind, your cunning - the way you’re able to analyze and measure every situation to your best benefit so quickly, the deft slip of your hands as you mix drinks or cook, the way you stride through a room and command everyone’s attention should you wish it - the way that beneath the commanding and sharp exterior, you’ve got an indescribable and unwavering passion for your craft and for those you care about… And… just - no matter what this shitty world throws at you, I’ll be by your side, as long as you’ll have me.”

Your hand had drifted to his jaw as you spoke. You held him as he held you, a long, quiet moment stretching between you both as something swelled and burned and sung so very, very sweetly between your souls.

At last, he pulled you closer yet, his forehead tipping to brush against yours.

“… You mean that, I can feel it…” he murmured. It wasn’t quite disbelief in his voice, but something so very close to it, so close that it made your hand smooth downwards towards his neck, unable to find words, but grounding him with your caress as surely as he was grounding you in the storm of swelling emotions twisting and slipping between your souls.

“Every word and more,” you said.

He closed the last breath of distance between you, capturing your lips once more in a kiss. This one was even more insistent than the last, a passion and need behind his movements that had you letting out a soft gasp as you returned the kiss, your hand gripping at the strong line of his neck as his hands dragged red-hot along your skin, a thrilling heat that only had you wanting more.

“Grillby,” you gasped as you broke away just for a moment.

“I want to claim you,” he said simply, his gaze unwavering, intense, absolute. “You, dearheart… I love you. I love you, so much that my soul can barely stand your absence, so much that despite every inch of what has occurred in my lifespan warning me of the dangers of attachment - I would rather take on the world than have you parted from me,” he swore.

Your breath was fully stolen from you as he kissed you once more, pulling back only a breath’s space to speak once more.

“My soul is dark, my dear, something I know you’re aware of by now. It burns fiercely, but many a charred mark stand on its surface for what I’ve done. And still… if you’d have it, my damned soul is yours, as surely as yours would be mine.”

You lost your battle with the wetness pooling at the corners of your eyes. Despite it, your voice was firm and lined with the pulsing joy emanating from your very soul as you dragged him in for another kiss, your words ghosting over his mouth.

“Grillby, you brilliant, handsome fool, I’d want nothing more.” 


	7. x UF Sans - Gimme Some Sort of Sign

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another one from @nighttimelights-prompted - a general request for UF!Sans meeting his hot Surface neighbor. ;D

Red decidedly did not have a death wish.

Even with Edge out for the day - no doubt chasing Undyne down or accidentally terrorizing parents when he walked up wordlessly with a lost child he found wandering in the park as he trained - Edge’s sense of smell was uncanny for a being without a nose, and would happily shout Red’s skull into the next century if he caught a whiff of smoke clinging to anything inside.

So without bothering to properly walk out of his room, Red tucked his box of cigarettes and his lighter in his shorts and teleported to the balcony.

Their apartment was a pretty nice one, all things considered - decent area too, now that monsters could legally integrate with society. He and Edge had been in agreement on holding onto an apartment for at least a little bit before deciding to set up permanently anywhere - the world was big up here, absurdly so, and even if they’d both feel more comfortable closer to the mountain, there were a lot of areas around the city to choose from. So here he was, leaning against the railing of their top-floor corner apartment balcony, with a view of the balconies in the building adjacent to them accompanying the view of the enormous wooded park they lived next to. It was a view that made him feel a little more at ease when his anxiety was acting up - he could grab a smoke, stare up at the sky, or do a little people watching alongside the next apartment building or in the shade of the park.

As he slipped his cigarette between his teeth and lit it , enjoying the late afternoon sun on his bones and the decent breeze picking up, he noticed that his foot started instinctively tapping - huh, he could hear [ a song](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fyoutu.be%2FAEB6ibtdPZc&t=YjhkN2YxMDExMzA4YTZlOTJhOGRkOGQ3YzY3NjA1NjZjZDdiNTgwMyw4MmN6YlFtMw%3D%3D&b=t%3ADI7gOQ3ng_wxkIA3AxE6Kg&p=https%3A%2F%2Fnighttimelights-prompted.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F160150043140%2Fheres-another-prompt-fell-sans-react-to-meeting&m=1) now actually, coming from the next apartment building over, pretty loudly…

_ “All that I want _

_ Is to wake up fine _

_ Tell me that I’m alright - _

_ That I ain’t gonna die.” _

The cigarette almost dropped out of Red’s mouth.

_ “All that I want _

_ Is a hole in the ground. _

_ You can tell me when it’s alright _

_ For me to come out.” _

You were on the balcony closest to him in the next building over - top floor, corner apartment, probably a mere 50 feet away. You had a series of small clotheslines strung out towards one side of your balcony and had clipped up several shirts and what seemed to be a set of sheets for a bed. Next to you buzzed a small speaker, surprisingly loud for it’s clearly travel-intended size, and it played the song on as you shifted and swayed, tapping out the energetic beat of the song while you sang along and clipped up a pair of jeans and took down a few dry pieces of clothing to make further room.

_ “Hard times _

_ Gonna make you wonder why you even try _

_ Hard times _

_ Gonna take you down and laugh when you cry _

_ These lives-” _

Your back was mostly towards Red, and stars was he  _ grateful _ . He felt a bead of magic forming on his skull, and knew a bit of a flush had picked up on his face- because by Asgore’s shitty beard, he couldn’t tear his gaze away from the figure you cut as you finished hanging up your laundry and spun around, your hips hitting side to side in perfect time, a mischievous grin on your face as your eyes closed and you sang along to the deceptively upbeat song.

_ “And I still don’t know how I even survive _

_ Hard times, _

_ Hard times - _

_ And I gotta get to rock bottom-!” _

Your foot stamped against the balcony floor, your arms thrown wide as you crowed the line to the sky.

Red’s soul jumped in his chest at the sight -

_ You were attractive as hell. _

And then you made eye contact.

You nearly jumped as you startled so hard - Red stayed stock still even as his soul tightened for a moment, not moving an inch as he took a slow drag of his cigarette, the genuine grin that had come over his expression turning just a hint wicked at the blush that flared over your features. Your hand went to your chest as you recovered - pretty quickly, he admitted to himself, considering you probably weren’t used to sentient skeletons eyeing you while you hung your laundry up to dry. In really short pajama shorts, no less.

… He should really focus higher up. Your eyes were still wide on him, but you had tilted your head in curiousity now, a rueful grin on your face as you then gave him an unsure, sheepish wave.

Red’s grin grew. He winked at you, pulling his cigarette from between his teeth lazily to give you a single wave of his two extended fingers. He caught a brief shake of your shoulders and your grin growing in mild disbelief. The next moment you perked up as the song you had been dancing to picked up into it’s second verse, and despite your awareness of your unexpected audience your head bobbed once more and you rolled your hips again. Then you seemed to remember yourself as your eyes flew to his again - funny how he could read you so well, so quickly - but instead of giving up on your solo dance time, your grin grew and you shut your eyes and started to sing along with the song once again.

_ “Walking around _

_ With my little rain cloud _

_ Hanging over my head _

_ And it ain’t coming down~” _

Your hips swayed again and you bounced from foot to foot with a spin. Red’s eyesockets opened wider, his grin growing once again in delight at your apparent lack of care at his watching. Then you opened your eyes as you pressed a hand to your lower torso and rolled your hips, shooting him a  _ goddamn cheeky wink _ .

_ “Where do I go? _

_ Gimme some sort of sign - _

_ You hit me with lightning! _

_ Maybe I’ll come alive-?” _

You laughed then as you twisted around, your head following after your movements, your hair flaring at the motion and some unbidden thrill breathing energy into every inch of your body.

Red couldn’t look away.

The music played on, the drum beat marking every pulse of your torso, your feet slipping and stepping with the words of the song, your expression matching the driving cry of the song. Something to the way you sang and danced, too - stars, he could tell that every inch of you was fully aware of the lyrics you sang, and that your very soul connected with those words. He felt connected to you more and more as the song played on, his foot still tapping as he moved to the corner of his balcony closest to you, catching your eye as you twisted your way through the second chorus. That blush had risen on your face again, seemingly all too aware of the pair of eyelights unwaveringly on you, but some confidence pulled from deep down must have told you to not care, to dance anyways, and as you rolled your hips with a wicked twitch to your grin, Red knew you were hoping to tease, too.

And hell, he didn’t even know your name.

… Well damn, he had to remedy that.

_ “Makes you wonder why you even try, _

_ Makes you wonder why you even try. _

_ Still don’t know how I even survive…” _

Red closed his eyes for a brief moment as another wind picked up, pulling the smoke away from his face as he lowered his cigarette again and willed his mind to come up with a minimally-creepy way to get a chance to actually… talk to you. Showing up at your door after this would be so, so wrong, wouldn’t it? Yeah, definitely a creep move. And you’d clearly already done your laundry, it’s not like he’d get the chance to catch you down at the laundry center…

A bundle of cloth hit his face.

He dropped his cigarette as a curse was half shaken out of him - he grabbed at the material and pulled it away.

It was a thin hoodie, a cute red thing that smelled of fresh air and sunlight and some kind of oddly pleasant detergent. Red’s eyesockets widened as his gaze quickly went from the hoodie in his hands to you.

“Woops, looks like the wind grabbed that one-!” You called out to him, your hands on your hips and that same grin on your face. Your blush had intensified a bit, though, and he could tell there was a hint of nervous embarrassment and disbelief in yourself behind the mildly casual confidence with which you spoke.

“… must’ve been one hell of a breeze,” Red replied, raising his voice just enough to carry to you. His brow quirked upwards as his grin tilted towards a smirk. His soul thrilled in his chest at the sound of your normal voice, at you actually taking the chance to talk to him.

“Yeah, somethin’ like that,” you replied with an innocent shrug. Your hand went to your neck then as you glanced briefly away before leaning against your railing. “Hey, I was thinking about treating myself to a cup of coffee - don’t suppose you’re free to meet me with my hoodie at that coffeeshop down a block? Maybe uh - I mean, hey, I’ll even buy you a cup for your trouble, if you’re up to it?”

… Stars, he thought you were cute enough when you were dancing, but with that nervous, hopeful anticipation on your face?

“i’d have to be a total  _ bonehead  _ to not take you up on that,” Red replied easily, winking at you once again.

A single moment passed before you slapped a hand to your forehead and laughed, loud and so, so sweet.

“Oh man - you gotta be- a pun? Oh hell, this is gonna be good,” you said. You shook your head, a bright and eager warmth to your smile as you met his gaze again. “Alright then, boneboy, I’ll meet you downstairs in front of the mailboxes in ten minutes. Don’t be late!”

With that you scooped up your speaker and darted inside, presumably to change. Your door slid shut with a snap - but Red still caught as you stood for a moment with your back to the glass door, then tossed your speaker to the side out of view and slapped your hands to your face and - he guessed - bent over and let out a slow, excited, disbelieving scream. You messed up your hair rapidly as the energy ran through you, then stood stock straight and glanced to either side of your room before disappearing off further in your apartment.

Red’s cheekbones were almost aching with how wide his grin was. He looked at the hoodie in his hand, then back up to your balcony.

“… ‘boneboy’. I’ve got a hot coffee date with the hotter neighbor that just called me ‘boneboy’,” he muttered, his grin still laced with disbelief. “…. this is gonna be good.”

He glanced back down at himself - might as well toss on a new shirt, right? Bit late for the first impressions chance, but… huh. He definitely had a few jokes up his sleeve about the kinda material his clothes were made of…

He vanished from his balcony, ignoring the red magic still dusting his grinning face and the stray thought that the red hoodie in his hand would look  _ particularly  _ good on you. 


	8. x UF Grillby - Keep On Getting Closer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Another old request from my now-hiatused @nighttimelights-prompted blog: _Okay my dear, I've thought of a prompt for you! I'm a sucker for the drunken trope, and I'm also a sucker for UF!Grillby. Sooo, how about Grillbz's S/O gets super drunk in the bar and ends up dancing (when did the jukebox get fixed..?) with a few handsy patrons? What happens when he notices?_

The atmosphere palpably changed when the jukebox clicked over its track.

As far as you knew, it had been well over a decade since the jukebox had played anything but the one song. Grillby had been unable to fix it, not that he’d admit it… or allow for someone else to call that out.

Naturally, though, there had been precisely zero people foolish enough to point the fact out.

So when you twirled across the dance floor that had long since been simply accepted as open space in the bar, the sudden change in atmosphere spun along throughout the bar, flaring with your dress. Your eyes caught the glittering black flames of Grillby’s, and you tossed him a wink and raised your half-empty glass. His hands continued moving without missing a beat as he tossed the shaker of alcohol in the air and over his shoulder to catch it behind his back with a dark flair and dexterity that fueled the warmth in your core.

The music starting up had a pulsing beat and a bass line that had you kicking up your heels and beckoning for some of your friends and the other regulars to join you on the dance floor. No one moved for a moment - it ended up being Red that got caught by your unwavering gaze first, glancing as he was between Grillby and you with a hilariously unsure grin. He gave in when you put your free hand on your hip and raised a challenging brow. With a shrug, he strode over and simply stood by you, hands in his pockets, not moving an inch, grinning at your unimpressed look.

Still, the alcohol left your limbs light and your heartbeat pounding a flush through your cheeks. You weren’t a fool - you caught the furtive glances of the other bar patrons towards your boyfriend, however unfitting the word felt, but when he didn’t move from his spot people slowly began to join you, their own drinks in hand, partners and friends in tow.

The track clicked over again, and the volume seemed to rise just perfectly. Before you could track the change through the heady wash of alcohol in your system - that one bunny who you always traded gossip and the latest community intelligence with had hooked you up with yet another refill - the entire dancefloor was full with pulsing bodies and bright, drunken laughter. Sans himself, spiked mustard in hand, ended up grabbing the very same bunny and doing what you figured might as well count as a dance… even if it might better be suited for the bedroom. You laughed as you spun, wrapping yourself in the drunken haze and infectious energy, in the way you could feel Grillby’s eyes rake over your form as you slid your hand knowlingly along your curves, dipping along the side of your chest, the swell of your hip-

You were suddenly aware that it wasn’t just your hands on you.

There was the heat of bodies around you, but one had just aligned itself with your back, large and clumsy hands gripping at your waist as your body swayed. You scowled, trying to figure out whether to tell the person to fuck off, or just skip the niceties and elbow them in the tenderest spot you could reach - but your choice was interrupted with your own voice squeaking out, surprise flushing up your body as you felt the stranger’s hands cup your ass.

The next moment, a roar of flame shot past your cheek without singing a single hair on your head, nearly simultaneously startling and silencing a shout from whoever it was behind you.

Suddenly there was the cold absence of bodies behind you, and the entire dance floor’s movements froze to match.

Your eyes lifted, and before you could focus on the bar, the very man you were looking for was in front of you. The edges of his purple fire had deepened into a near maroon tinge, his impeccable suit and the fur lining of his trim coat eerily catching his steady glow. With a shudder you pressed against him in relief - the anger that was hidden in his flames was certainly not directed at you, but ran a chill up your spine at the same time a heat pooled in your gut. A sharp awareness ran along you of the trailing scars he had left along your back, in places only he would see, soothed by kisses almost more heated than the scarring marks had felt, his impeccable cooking later healing you as he held you in his lap, secure and wanted and so very decidedly only in a moment of brief reprieve before his head would dip once more to your shoulder, lighting the desire in you to a needy blaze once again-

The dance floor remained still as Grillby’s hand went to your chin, tipping your face upwards towards him with a gentle force that brooked no argument, even if you had one. His eyes narrowed as he caught your flushed gaze.

“You are mine,” he said. His growl of a voice made you breathe in sharply, knowing your rush of arousal burning through you so terribly well by now. From the approving flash to his gaze, he caught it too. Your hands smoothed against his chest under his jacket, your back arching to hold yourself closer to him as the sweet burn of alcohol within you and the unceasing music all around you had you throwing more inhibitions than usual out the door.

“I have a feeling that idiot knows that, now,” you replied breathlessly, your face tilting to glance backwards - but before you could catch a glimpse of him, Grillby drew your face firmly back towards him. His other hand found your waist, his broad hand dragging you just that slight remaining distance closer to him.

“I’ll have everyone know that you are not theirs to even consider,” he growled, his eyes lidding.

The jukebox clicked over to the [ next track](https://t.umblr.com/redirect?z=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DPib8eYDSFEI&t=YWY2Mzk2OTg2OTU5NWFiZTc4NDVhZWRjMTRjYTExMzZhNGUzZGE5YSxrME9NQlRLVA%3D%3D&b=t%3ADI7gOQ3ng_wxkIA3AxE6Kg&p=https%3A%2F%2Fnighttimelights-prompted.tumblr.com%2Fpost%2F158651669015%2Fokay-my-dear-ive-thought-of-a-prompt-for-you&m=1) .

_ You’ve applied the pressure to have me crystalised… _

_ And you’ve got the faith that I could bring paradise. _

Grillby’s hand shifted from your chin to lift one of your hands from his chest. He held you tight and close, and before you could consider his actions he pressed lightly against you and shifted his leg, and you followed his movement. He stepped forward and you followed in reverse, your body rolling against him as the beat pulsed deep within you. His gaze held yours as yours held his, your body shifting deftly as he led you in controlled, fluid movements in the area that had opened without question for you both.

_ I’ll forgive and forget before I’m paralyzed. _

_ Do I have to keep up the pace to keep you satisfied? _

His hips shifted again, and he leaned over you, pulling you down into a deep dip. Without missing a beat his lips caught at the exposed swath of smooth skin now available to him at your neck, causing you to gasp a little too loudly. Your hand tightened in his grip, and you felt him smirk against your skin, his firey tongue dipping out to taste you as he pulled you once more back up. He lifted your hands in a rolling twist, and you crossed them and turned your back to him, slowly rotating your hips downwards as you gently slid down the firm line of his body.

You felt the shudder in his body that was just barely too slight to be visible. Even more delightfully, every line of heat and want in your body set ablaze snapped your attention to the hard length of him you had ground against.

_ You don’t move slow, taking steps in my direction. _

_ The sound resounds, echo - does it lessen your affection? _

_ No. _

You twisted back around, not an ounce of you caring about your audience as he rolled you along the beat. Your hand slipped back upwards towards the fur line of his jacket, tangling in the soft material with a familiarity that had his smirk lining clearer through his flames. The look in his eyes mirrored your own.

_ Glaciers have melted to the sea; I wish the tide would take me over. _

_ I’ve been down on my knees… And you just keep on getting closer… _

He pulled you upwards as you dragged him down, your lips melting together at once. You let out a soft moan at the heat and skill of his lips, and he caught your lower lip with his teeth before dipping his tongue to meet yours. His hand released yours to tangle possessively in your hair, the one at your waist dipping lower to smooth against your ass. Your hand moved to pull at the solid flames at the back of his neck, demanding for more as surely as he was.

You didn’t care to notice as Red sighed and waved a hand to deposit the still-smoking body of your aggressor out the quickly opened-and-shut door. His gaze slipped to the jukebox, still playing loud and smooth as the other patrons eventually shrugged and began dancing again with a more healthy awareness to leave space around your bodies.

It certainly was more interesting around here since he agreed to teach you the finer details of magic mechanics. He doubt he ever would’ve had the luck you did in navigating Grillby’s sharp eye so you could fix up that old junkheap - let alone the ability to summon up the interest you showed in adding a wider variety of songs.

_ And you just keep on getting closer… _

_ When you’re the one that I’ve kept closest. _

You smirked into your kiss with Grillby, reveling in the way his hold on you tightened, the way his magic thrummed through his flames and against you. He wove it around you, passionately secure and dominating, and your heartbeat skipped as you matched each other move for move, challenge for challenge, laying out a test and a game you would both walk away the victors of.

_ Go slow… _


	9. x SF Papyrus - Quiet on the Rooftop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> An old request from my @nighttimelights-prompted blog: _Could you write a scenario about SF Papyrus smothering his sad S/O in affection?_

He found you on the roof.

It was your favorite hideaway - you always felt it seemed too dramatic, even for only being the second story. But with easy enough access from your bedroom window, and the privacy afforded by it being on the rear half of the house, sometimes you couldn’t resist. Sometimes the world just felt like it was smothering you, and the open night sky that stretched above you when you laid on your back up there eased a little of the twisting tension in your chest.

“huh. guess the weatherman was wrong after all.”

You jolted up slightly at Russ’ voice rumbling behind you. With twist of your body and a messy shake of your hair, you were looking up into the soft yet too-sharp eyelights of your boyfriend - bonefriend, bonebae, any number of names fit the bill, really - with an attempt of a playful glare falling woefully short. You let your expression fall into one of waiting curiousity, knowing that the punchline was-

“might have a bone t’ pick with him. said that it’d be clear, but it’s looking a little cloudy right here over my sweetheart.”

A half-laugh turned flustered intake of air brought a ghost of a smile to your face at last. His grin pulled pleased as he dropped to sit behind you, his hands untucking from his pockets to pull your back to his chest, and you fell into his embrace with quiet relief, even if his arrival and sweet jokes had not been able to wash you free of whatever this was hanging heavy in you.

… Even with his presence, quiet and sturdy behind you, the tension was growing again in your chest. It was brewing hot and prickly and rising more and more. Trying to choke it back down with a clenched jaw, your eyes screwed shut, the distant stars far away too clouded by a burning wetness that gathered in your eyes.

Russ’ arms tightened around you. His chin rested on top of your head, and you felt a gentle rumbling through his chest as he pulled you closer against him. He was humming a soft, low tune, a lullaby that you had heard him humming before, almost too sad to be calming but more lovely for it. In his voice it sounded like the ancient song of a sailor looking to the too-distant sea, a promise of tales older than memory finding it’s winding way to you, down to your soul.

The tears rolled down your face now. Your hands clutched at his arms as you shook, crying quietly.

_ “deep under the mountain cold, _

_ the rivers wind with tales of old _

_ the distant fire sweeps _

_ calling souls to core _

_ to find their heart’s stronghold…” _

His hands slipped along your arms, and with little effort he lifted you until you sat fully in his lap, your head finding its place easily in the crook of his neck as your arms circled around him under his jacket. His head nestled close to yours in turn, and you found your lungs once more as you inhaled his soft scent of clove cigarettes and whiskey and pine and maple syrup. One of his hands slipped through your hair, a soothing presence that massaged steady silent promises against your aching head. His other arm circled you, holding you closer yet, grounding you in your tears and wild sea of broken-through emotions as he continued singing to you.

_ “the ground shakes yet far above, _

_ ancient water tortured fond of. _

_ we wait deep below _

_ fallen but yet ‘live, _

_ greater called in sought of love.” _

Your breathing slowed as he hummed onwards, the ache in your chest soothed at the gravel-soft slip of his voice. Shaky, too soft for anyone not as close as he was to hear, you began to hum along with him.

His hand stilled in your hair, but his voice didn’t waver.

His mouth pressed against your forehead as he tilted his face to press against you, the strength of his voice buzzing soft against your skin, and you felt as if his magic was wrapping around you just in the way his voice rumbled through his chest and against you pressed against him. Something in the haunting and bittersweet tune of the song, hummed with him, was relieving… a lot of it. It hurt, stars did it hurt, but…

“… you’ve always been a fighter,” his voice came then, his humming soft, but his teeth still pressed to your forehead. You stopped humming too, pressing just a bit closer to him. A pleased sound rumbled in him for a moment, almost too quiet to hear. “… not in… the usual way. in the quiet way. you always… persevere. sweet, and ready, and bearing too much, as always,” he murmured. His hand lifting to your chin gently lifted your gaze to his.

It was intense, and admiring… and deep within it, you almost caught… anger. Not at you - you knew him too well to think that.

“It’s not… it’s fine,” you said quietly, wincing internally at the cliche line even as his expression shifted. “That is… it will be fine, I mean…”

“it will. but that doesn’t mean it can’t feel like too much in the meantime, darlin’.”

Your breath caught in your throat as you felt the tears catch at your eyes again.

Russ’ thumb brushed away the tears at one eye, letting his words settle in you, an all-too-knowing look to the shine of his eyelights.

You hugged him harder and closed the last of the distance between you, pressing your lips to his mouth despite your fresh tears.

“Thank you,” you murmured, not willing to break the kiss to say it. You angled slightly, pulling him closer.

His hand swept along your jaw gently, returning your kiss tenfold and anchoring you in the thrum of his protective magic ghosting over his bones and echoing deep within his chest, his soul calling to yours in comfort and love.


	10. x US Papyrus - Affection at the Arcade

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> From my old @nighttimelights-prompted blog. The request - for a cute arcade date with Underswap Papyrus! <3

“… you’re kidding me.”

“Nope.”

“the whole building?”

“Yep.”

“and it’s only that much for a full pass for tonight?”

“Hell yes.”

Stretch’s face split into a genuine grin that you hadn’t seen in too long.

“what are we waiting for?”

You hooked your arm through his and lunged forward, finding him far easier to pull than you’d expected based on his usual hold on himself - but he went with you easily, his pace picking up and making you both laugh. You had been friends with Stretch - and his brother, and their absurd and wonderful circle of friends - for the better part of a year now, but this was one of the few times you were getting to actually bring him somewhere alone. No other friends to flank you, and with the ongoing flirting and the handful of dates and hand-holding and cheek kisses that had been building, you were definitively on date territory here too.

But honestly, with everything this skeleton had been through both in the past and lately, and with how much you cared for him, you were mostly excited to be the one to bring him to his first trip to an enormous arcade center.

The look on the attendant’s face when she handed you your passcards to the arcade was one you’d never forget, but far more priceless was the slack-jawed stare Stretch had on his face as he turned the corner and caught sight of the full arcade.

With your phone on silent, he didn’t have the chance to catch you before you sneakily took a picture of him. He turned to you right as you pocketed your phone again, though, and you felt something swell in your chest at the awed look he gave you.

He was unable to find the words, but you took mercy on him and intertwined your fingers, a soft blush on your face despite the mischievous grin and wink you shot him. “Think you can beat me in the Jurassic Park simulator?”

You were liking the way his orange blush dusted his cheekbones… and better yet, you were particularly liking that glint to his eyelights as he managed to recover and squeeze your hand back. “prepare to get  _ tyrannosaurus wrecked _ .”

“Oh my god. No way, nope, nuh-uh.  _ Banned _ . Banned for life-” 

He laughed as he followed your retreating form towards the gaudily-themed machine sporting it’s matching dinosaur-filled backdrop. 

_ … But really, how the hell was he so good at this game. _

You watched with narrowed eyes as he nimbly flicked through the scroll-style alphabet to put up his three-letter top score signature.

“… ‘GDO’?” you asked slowly. You still couldn’t quite process that he had beaten the last top score - and yourself, though technically you had ‘both’ won since you both escaped the park without dying.

He turned to you, leaning back in the unyielding plastic seat of the fake Jeep and laying his arm along the top of it behind you. He looked at you, one boney brow cocked and a shit-eating grin spread across his face. He twisted the hand that laid by your shoulder just slightly, poking your cheek with one finger.

“‘Get Dunked On,’ sweetheart.”

You rolled your eyes but he had pulled a laugh from you anyways - damn him. You grinned back. “Alright then, oh master of the dinosaur arts - how about best out of the night? We’ll do an uneven number of games, whoever can win the most gets the prize,” you wagered.

He poked your cheek again, and huffed a laugh when you unsuccessfully swatted at his hand without breaking eye contact.

“alright, alright, i might be in for that - but what’s the prize?”

You thought for a moment, your finger pressing to your lips as you did so - it wasn’t often that you could get Stretch to take up a bet or challenge like this, it needed to be good.

As you racked your brain, you missed the way his eyelights softened, and the way his blush picked up just a little in intensity…

You snapped your fingers as the idea came to you, causing Stretch to startle slightly - but he returned to his look of interest at the glimmer in your eye.

“Whoever wins gets one free request of the other person. Nothing illegal or crazy out of bounds - no streaking through the building or anything-”

Stretch pressed a hand to his chest and gave you his best  _ ‘who, me?’ _ look.

“Yeah, not buying it. Anyways, that’s the wager - one request, scot-free.”

The next moment, you felt Stretch’s hand clasp yours. He shook it once.

“you’re on.”

“Bring it.”

… Well, you’d certainly made statements that were  _ more  _ undeservedly confident before.

Not many, but still.

You had steered him quickly away from the mini-basketball game, shooting him a look that brooked no argument. Like hell you were going to let him get you on that one with gravity magic on his side. You hit up Classic Pacman instead - and nearly tied him for it. He got distracted in the first round, muttering something excited about fully functioning joysticks making a big difference. Still, he won out, sending you scowling grumpily for a moment before his hand brushed along your shoulders, sending a shiver down your spine instead as he offered a racing game next, not appearing to notice your moment of distraction.

The racing game was his first stumble - the delayed and purposefully screwy reaction time of the steering wheel sent him cursing under his breath about shitty engineering, cut-off and followed by laughter when your own chuckling was interrupted by a sudden stream of curses for careening into a waterfall off a trick jump. You beat him even still, resulting in him dragging you to Guitar Hero - which he outplayed you soundly at, and you couldn’t even get mad because damn if it wasn’t your own fault for getting distracted by the smooth play of his fingers over that dumb plastic guitar.

Then went four games of chance in a row - all varied roulettes of light stacked against you, and you won three to his one. He got the perfect timing on the coin drop game after that, and had absurdly impeccable aim for the following virtual fishing game. Warmed up enough, you both breached the shooting game category next - finding yourselves only choosing generic hunting and zombie horror ones. And hell, if he wasn’t good - three to your two, even on the one you had managed to get in the leaderboard for, the little shit. He looked particularly pleased about that one, and you had a feeling that ‘GDO’ was going to haunt your free time and wallet for a long time to come.

A momentary truce was called when you came up to the strength test machine.

“i’m fine with the truce, really, and i wouldn’t cheat since it’s, well, a truce-”

“So you’d cheat if it wasn’t a truce?”

“well hey, i never said  _ that _ -”

“Like hell, bonehead, you implied it!”

Your laughter had you bending at the waist, and you gave him a soft teasing punch towards the arm for his transgressions. He caught it easily, grinning despite your accurate accusations.

“totally unproven slander against my character aside, i genuinely don’t wanna break it,” he said, lifting a brow as his grin stayed wide. You laughed again, shaking your head, not finding the will to pull your hand out of his hold.

“Oh-hoh, that’s a lot of talk for a guy who’s all bone-”

He snorted, his grin spreading. “props for that one. but uh, really.” His other hand lifted and he scratched lightly at his skull and looked away.

You straightened, eyeing him dubiously. “Stretch, I know you’re strong as hell, but you really think you could max out this thing? They’re literally weighted against you, since it’s an automatic prize if you ring the bell.”

“side bet, then,” he said. Your head tilted slightly, but you nodded for him to continue. He still held your fist in his hand, and the ongoing contact was starting to make you blush a bit. “if i can max it out, i get a kiss as a reward.”

Your face flared with heat.

“Stretch, wh-” you cut yourself off, biting your lip. You cocked a hip and rested one hand on it, eyeing him with a grin only slightly tinged with embarrassment. “Y’know what? Fine. I’m in. But no magic. No gravity nonsense helping your swing or anything like that - and I know what your magic looks like. Show me what you’ve got, bone boy.”

He let go of your hand then. He stepped forward, towards the test of strength, and towards you - he leaned in, his height giving him quite the advantage over your stature, and you found yourself frozen in spot as his voice came in a whisper right by your ear.

“anytime you want, sweetheart,” he said. His hand brushed your shoulder as he stepped around you.

You took a few seconds to try and get your blush under control before you turned to watch him.

The hammer was already in his hands, the comically oversized item looking instead hilariously ‘normal’ in his hands. He looked to the attendant, who waved him on in a bored manner. Gripping the hammer in both hands, he took an easy, solid stance before glancing back at you. He winked when he caught what you knew was a heavy lingering blush on your face.

He lifted the hammer with ease then, positioning it high and ready for a moment that hung in the air-

The next second, it had hit the scale dead-center with only the sharp whoosh of hastily displaced air to hint that he had even swung it at all.

The lights shot upwards, and the bright peal of the test’s bell rang out as your mouth fell open.

It snapped shut half a minute later as Stretch’s finger met the line of your chin and lifted to remind you to close it. He was back in front of you, and with his other hand he was offering you an enormous stuffed dog.

“for my rapt audience,” he said simply, his gaze nearly twinkling with amusement.

You took the dog from him weakly, glancing between him and the bell. “You… You, how…” Wow, words. “No… no magic…?”

He laughed, and his hand lifted to your face, tucking away a little hair that had fallen out of place.

“no magic,” he promised, grinning. “and don’t worry about the kiss… i can accept a tab.”

You pulled him to air hockey next as he laughed at the flash of your expression in response to his words. Behind the fluff of the large stuffed animal that you were now clutching close, your cheeks burned brightly above a smile that you were unable to twist into anything better to react to him with.

The puck flashed along the table for the next half hour. You won three games, then him the next two as he seemed to memorize your patterns and turn them against you, then you once more for the following two with figuring out his own tactics and maybe just a  _ little  _ help from strategized distractions.

“Okay, okay, let’s call it quits on this one!” You finally said, lifting your hands as the last puck clunked home in his goal. You shook out your hand, laughing even as you winced at the stiffness you had built up in your joints. “I might just lose my whole arm if we keep this up,” you groused despite the cheerfulness in your tone. Your cheeks were still warm, a feeling that definitely wasn’t fading as the night wore on. You looked up to catch Papyrus looking at you, a gentle grin on his face as he leaned on his end of the table.

You returned his grin, blushing a little further once again. Your cheeks were close to hurting from how much you had been smiling at this point, but you couldn’t quite bring yourself to care.

Scooping up your new plushie friend, you went to lean next to Stretch.

“So, totally not conveniently, we’re tied up right now. Feel up to finishing this?” You asked, bumping him with your shoulder. “Your choice of game,” you offered with a waggle of your brow.

He stuffed his hands into his hoodie pocket as he looked over the room, exaggerating contemplation.

“well… i don’t want it to be too easy to kick your butt-”

You rolled your eyes.

“and i’m a fair monster, i don’t want to choose something that you’ll call cheater on-”

You elbowed him lightly, smirking. “No need to pout because I won’t let you cheat at Skee-Ball.”

“-though some would say it’s unfair that i don’t get to use my natural skills,” he continued, his gaze shifting to you as he winked. You just rolled your eyes again, even as your blush grew with your smile. “so all that said… how about DDR?”

He nodded his head towards a corner of the room you hadn’t yet visited - and sure enough, there flashed a currently unoccupied metal twin stage with neon arrows and endlessly looping music.

Your eyes widened. “DDR? Seriously?”

He stood up fully then and took a step towards it before looking back at you. “what, don’t think you can beat a bag of bones at a dancing game?”

You stood up and stretched high before settling your hands on your hips and grinning up at him. “Nah, I just think you made a huge mistake,” you said.

Minutes in, you and Stretch had your feet blurring over the panels.

Three song choices - the first, you beat him soundly, as only 15 seconds in he realized just how serious you were about your claim. Aimless years of your youth spent playing home versions of the game using knockoff dance pads with your friends had paid off, and it didn’t even take a full song for you to get back into the swing of the pattern of arrows flying by. Better yet, this was an old arcade version, and you had played a lot of these songs already. The second song he caught up - especially thanks to you stumbling over your feet when you tried to twist and hit three quick double arrows in a row while your traitorous mind wondered how he could move so quickly and precisely even in a song with a beat that completely mismatched the arrows-

“i managed to find a copy of this to play and fixed up a dance pad from the dump,” he said suddenly. Your eyes lifted to his, and you caught him grinning at you, his expression decidedly mischievous.

“… Ohhh, you  _ cheater _ -” you accused, starting to laugh as realization washed over you.

“says the one who was all too happy to take me up on it when the advantage was seemingly for you,” he shot back, his own laughter quickly following in a way that sounded oddly breathless. The song ended moments later, and he had won out by hardly a dozen points.

“Alright, alright, last song, and it’s my choice- so you’d better bring your A game,” you said, your breathing a little harder than you’d like as you quickly tapped through the menu and chose a song before he could catch much of it. The older game started into it’s slow loading menu, and you turned to Stretch - only to find him right next to you and on your pad.

“oh, and i’d like to claim my reward from earlier,” he said. He picked one of your hands up, holding it with a gentleness that contrasted the devilish spark to his gaze.

“Wait - what, now??” You asked, startling slightly as you felt the blood rush to your cheeks all over again, the flush of exertion now much more clearly concentrated. “I - I mean-”

“only if you want,” he said offhandedly, despite his ongoing focus on you. In the background, you recognized the game’s cheerful sound for being halfway through loading the round. “if you want, just aim right here, no worries,” he said, tapping his cheek with one finger.

You’d be lying if you said you didn’t want the excuse, you knew… and maybe it would even trip him up, you reasoned, pretending halfheartedly like that was really what you actually cared about.

“Alright, alright - but quick! C-come here, lean down a little-”

He leaned down, his smile brightening. You went on your tiptoes to lean towards his cheek, your eyes fluttering shut for a moment as you squeezed his hand -

… That wasn’t cheekbone.

Something just a little bit softer than his cheekbones met your lips, and-  _ oh _ , oh hell, he was kissing you-!

You pressed back against him after only a moment, your lips tentatively moving against his, and you felt his hand squeeze yours back…

The next moment you heard the trill of the music starting up, and you both froze.

Suddenly your feet were fully back on solid platform and you were facing the screen, your eyes opening, your feet automatically jumping to hit the first arrows- your gaze shifted quickly to Stretch, and his feet were flying over the tiles as well. His face was lit up like an orange lamp and you caught the fading hint of orange magic from his left eye.

Your grin widened as your blush hit you harder and you focused on the screen again, willing your coordination to do anything but fail you now.

… Stretch beat you by six points.

You fell backwards, resting against the back bar heavily and staring at your screens in disbelief.

“I didn’t even think it was possible to win by so few points,” you said, your hands on your knees as you tried to not outright gasp for breath.

Stretch had one hand on his own bar, and he seemed to be a little winded himself. “call it an art,” he offered, seeming to come up short on anything better to offer in reply.

Your gazes caught then. Both of your blushes returned, once again, full force.

He grinned. “so… looks like i won,” he said slowly.

You shook your head, laughing hopelessly, willing yourself to not touch your lips as your body suddenly recalled the feel of his mouth against yours. “Yeah, you did, almost fair and square,” you replied.

“as almost fair and square as you ended up in second,” he replied, stepping off of the platform and offering you a hand. You took it after only a moment’s hesitation, scooping up your stuffed prize from earlier and letting him lead you back towards the entrance.

“… I’ll give you that,” you said, no amount of apology in your voice. He laughed openly at that, a sound so unguarded and warm that you found your hand clutching his a little tighter, knowing that you were feeling a budding mission to bring it out of him as often as you could.

“want to hit up Muffet’s? i dunno about you, but kicking your butt works up an appetite for me,” he teased.

“That’s just because I didn’t make it as easy as you thought it’d be,” you shot back as you made your way across the parking lot, lit gently by the occasional streetlight that slightly obscured the stars dotting the night sky overhead. He laughed again, and you grinned - before sighing, playing it up as put-upon as you could. “Still, though, to the victor goes the spoils, and all that. So what’ll it be, Stretch? What’s the request?”

You reached the car he had borrowed from his brother for the night - he had waved off your questions earlier when you asked why you weren’t teleporting tonight, simply saying that even he liked to drive on occasion. He stayed still for a moment, then turned to you. His free hand lifted to his neck, and his face tilted slightly away as he rubbed at the vertebrae there, his eyelights wandering towards the vague distance.

“well… i did think about it a bit…” he started slowly. You squeezed his hand lightly - you were definitely a little nervous, but your curiosity had mostly won out… alongside your anticipation, as the thrill of heat and butterfly nerves through you served reminder. He met your gaze, and you realized he was blushing again, despite him trying to wear his normal easy grin. “i don’t want to force you into anything you’re not into, so i’m not gonna - er, not again - i mean…” he sighed, his hand smacking lightly against his face as he grimaced at himself. He dropped it then, managing to meet your gaze once more. “… i’d like to ask for another date, and one i can surprise you with?”

The way his sentence trailed into a question, the way the orange magic ran over his cheekbones, the feel of his hand holding yours, the lingering scent of clove cigarettes and the sweetness of honey on his sweatshirt… your heart pounded in your chest, a heavy thrum that picked up in pace as you noticed these little details as your eyes widened, your breath catching slightly in your throat.

You squeezed the dog plush he had won for you while your own blush picked up. You were quiet for a few moments, ones that seemed to set him further tense as he gazed back down at you.

“… Request accepted - with one condition?”

His eyelights brightened with his blush, but he seemed to bite down on any further reaction, waiting for your further clarification, simply nodding perhaps a little too vigorously for the ease he was trying to portray.

You glanced away, biting your lip, then squeezed his hand again and met his gaze with an upwards twitch of your lips.

“… If I can kiss you again?”

A few moments passed, and you swore you could hear the music of the arcade even in the distance.

“ _ fuck  _ yes,” he whispered.

You couldn’t help the bright laugh that escaped you then. His relieved face lit up with a grin, and you pulled him down towards you with a firm drag at his hoodie as his arms circled you and pulled you close, giddiness washing through you as you kissed him with everything you had.


	11. x G!Papyrus (Aster) - Why Wait?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one was commissioned the other day by the lovely VampireZelda over on Tumblr as a gift for the super sweet, super wonderful, super talented VividlyLost! Viv loves some G!Paps (whom I call Aster) and we've talked a lot about my headcanons for him - so this fic was born to angle towards some sweet fluff with him. ;)

Steam was still clinging to your mirror when the knock sounded against your front door. Weekend or no, you certainly weren’t expecting anyone, so it was with a baffled rush that you threw on your clothes and wrung out your hair before leaving the bathroom and moving to answer the door.

Waiting on the other side was a man dressed pleasantly in a dark suit, holding a large box in his hands. He addressed you by name, reading off a label before looking to you with what was clearly a question in his gaze.

“Oh- um, yes? Can I help you?” You said. He smiled then, and pulled out a tablet that looked nothing short of being the newest tech. 

“Express delivery for you. Will you sign here?”

You did so and handed him the tablet back, pleasantly surprised at this point albeit deeply confused before you find the box being placed in your hands. “Er- who’s it from…?”

Your head lifts to look back up at him, but he’s already striding away almost out of sight - but not before looking back at you with a grin. “You sure do have quite the friends in high places. Have a lovely evening!”

He was out of view from where you stood at your doorway within moments, leaving you even more baffled before looking down at the surprisingly hefty box you now held. Stepping back into your apartment, you idly kicked the door shut behind you and locked the door once again. The label did not include a return address, but it did appear to be official - and sported a number of notices regarding just how well this package apparently needed to be treated in the delivery process. 

It didn’t take long for you to find a knife to cut open the tape at the seams of the box. 

Once it was open, it revealed a far sleeker package, a matte charcoal grey with an accent of forest green in a logo that you recognized printed on the package. More quickly then, and with a growing smile on your face, you opened it, finding cushioning hiding the object it held - but a note written in green ink on sturdy parchment-brown stylized cardstock laid overtop.

_ My dear, as you well know, patience is not precisely my forte. I had hoped to surprise you upon my return from this damned two-week conference, but, well… _

_ I’ve made it a whole three days. Perhaps you would reward my self-restraint of that much time by donning this gear upon your earliest convenience? I eagerly await your reaction. _

_ Yours as ever, _

_ -A _

You took only the amount of time needed to set aside his note where you could keep it safe before you were swiftly unpacking the rest of the box.

Revealed was a helmet with a thick but still transparent visor, it’s color scheme matching the box it was held in. Accompanying it too was a pair of gloves with cybernetic patterns overlaying it, ones that reached all the way to your elbow. 

It would be a little on-the-nose to say they fit like a glove, but - well, they certainly fit like they were made for  _ you _ . 

The realization was natural, coming from knowing the one who had clearly sent the package to you as deeply and fondly well as you did.

Aster, somehow, had managed to get what seemed to be an unreleased and advanced version of his latest virtual reality technology fully operational - and despite the secrecy that he always grumbled had to surround his work according to certain entities, he had sent the prototype to you.

The setup was surprisingly easy to operate - explained in a jaunty single halfsheet of cardstock with minimalist illustrations, and in a short span of time you’d finished drying your hair, donned the helmet and gloves, and laid down as instructed. After some brief calibration adjustments that surprised you by showing and shifting as part of an embedded display in your transparent visor, you closed your eyes, and accepted the auditory prompt to start your VR session.

It felt like drifting asleep, only to jolt awake-

But what you saw wasn’t the ceiling of your bedroom through the visor.

No, it was Aster, standing in front of you in a perfectly white room, looking as though he’d been holding his breath for a long time.

You reeled for a moment and immediately he was at your side.

“A-Aster-?!” You looked up at him with wide eyes - vision perfectly clear, no visor in sight. “Is this - no, this… isn’t a dream, is it…? You actually-?”

He absolutely beamed at you.

“I am beyond delighted that it made it to you as promptly as promised-! How do you feel, dearheart?” He sounded that sort of eager he got when you saw him deep in wiring or coding for his latest modelling of his tech, but every ounce of his attention was on you. Despite his clear excitement there was a thread of concern in his tone. His hand met your shoulder, but it wasn’t quite a vivid sensation - like you  _ knew _ you were being touched, but couldn’t quite feel it. Almost like the area had fallen asleep, past the point of that static-feeling, and you had poked it only to get the most numb of acknowledged sensations. Still, you were in  _ awe _ .

“A little -  _ wow _ , a little… giddy, honestly?” You finally ventured, looking down over yourself, a smile growing as the shock gave way to absolute excitement. You even  _ looked _ like yourself, from what you could see, and were wearing what you had been when you laid down. “Aster, I can’t believe - you got a full dive VR experience working?!”

At hearing you were doing well Aster relaxed the last of his tension, his elatement rising fully with your own. “Yes! It was our big reveal for the conference I’m at - there are all sorts of bidders and the like already, of course, but I’ll be releasing basic schematics for open-source exploration of the technology at the end of these two weeks,” he said, waving off the revelation as if he was tacking on a statement about having soup for lunch - not freely supplying billion-dollar technology advances for the public to explore without being in an elite group.

“Aster, how did you- how are you-” You struggled to find the words, laughing as you fully straightened and looked at him. He looked mischievously pleased but elated still, the deep cracks in his features lifting with his charming smile. He outstretched his hand, quirking both a brow and his grin as he beckoned for your own.

“Might I have the pleasure, my dear?” He murmured, a glimmer in his green eyelights. 

You felt a flutter in your heart, but smiled back, raising a brow. “I think we’re past the point of you asking to hold my hand, Aster-”

But when you did, it wasn’t with that muted sensation of knowledge-

You felt the buzzing warmth his touch always held for you, felt his digits slide underneath your own, and gasped quietly at the pure, plain-as-day sensation from his teeth brushing over your knuckles in a toothy kiss as his gaze remained on your face.

“The gloves,” you breathed out.

“The gloves,” he repeated, murmuring against your skin. Stars, you could really, truly  _ feel  _ it. 

He straightened then, drawing you closer, until you were all but flush against him. Slowly he lifted your hand to his sternum. You could feel the softness of his sweater, felt the tickle of his scarf brushing your fingertips. He then guided your touch to brush over the line of his jaw. His gaze was soft, lidded, looking at you in that way he had that always made your heart skip a beat and then pick up at a faster pace.

Seeming to be focused on the play of your emotions, he spoke up softly again. “It’s all thanks to you, my dear.”

“Me?” You asked a little breathlessly, a pleasant shudder running down your spine as you felt his other hand trace down the sensitive inner curve of your elbow down to the sensitive skin of your wrist.

“You,” he said, nodding. His hand laid over yours, his hand seemingly dwarfing yours as you found yourself cupping his cheekbone. “Not only the soul that has called for my own ceaselessly since that day we met, but my muse, too,” he grinned. Seeing the confusion and flustering in your expression, he chuckled, the hand that had been drawing designs on your inner wrist slipping to hold your hand, interlacing your fingers. “You and I, we’ve spent many a night working companionably side by side on our own projects  - and there was one in particular where you had intimated the importance of touch in any number of experiences. That your senses were important in many ways - but touch… touch truly made such a difference. Made any experience feel all the more real - differentiated between dreams and waking, between feeling in control and otherwise - or perhaps not  _ in control _ , but, well,  _ very _ pleasantly aware…”

His voice trailed with no small amount of huskiness. You remembered that night quite vividly now - in particular, though, you’d remembered where it  _ lead _ -

That is, a  _ very _ intimate exploration of just what his touch could do to you.

He chuckled, that mischief of his shining through despite the deeper lilt of his voice. “... It inspired me to develop these gloves. I already had the helmet nearly operational - but I couldn’t shake what you’d said. I found the inspiration through you to craft the gloves, to interlock it all - to truly make a virtual  _ reality _ \- or at least the beginnings of one that is far more immersive than just sight and sound could allow. Ah, but of course, with that-!”

He opened the framing of his body slightly, taking a half step and making a broad sweeping gesture with his hand as he finally lifted it from yours at his cheek -

You gasped as suddenly the nondescript white room shimmered and shifted,  the entire visual peeling away to reveal a sunset beach. 

No vacation commercial could even  _ hope _ to rival the beauty before you - white sandy beaches dyed in sunset tones, crystal-clear waters washing gently against the shore - palm trees in the near distance, curving around the slip of the shore out of sight, and the ocean’s horizon glimmering with the most beautiful sunset you’d ever seen. Overhead you could begin to see the glimmer of countless constellations.

Aster’s hand gently squeezed your own. You finally tore your eyes away from the view to look up at him.

“I may not be able to be home and at your physical side at the moment, but so long as I am with you… I believe I can confess that  _ is _ home to me,” he murmured, searching your gaze. There was the slightest glimmer of green on his cheekbones, and you found your breath catching in you chest.

“Aster, it’s… it’s… there just aren’t words to describe it,” you whispered. Suddenly, the gorgeous view felt like it was paling in comparison to the way he was looking at you right now.

He drew your hand to his mouth once more, murmuring against your knuckles as his gaze held your own.

“I must confess, I feel the same regarding the view I find before me at this very moment.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Viv was happy to have this posted to this collection, much to my delight - thanks again for being your wonderful self!
> 
> to everyone else - thanks for reading~! <3 your comments always mean the world to me, so drop a few words and help keep my writing muse fueled up if you're interested in seeing more oneshots or fics period from me :D


	12. x G!Papyrus & x G!Sans (Poly G & Aster w/ Reader) - Between the Lines

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one's commission requested by the super sweet @thelazyhermits on Tumblr - a oneshot showcasing a poly relationship Reader has with G!Pap (Aster) and G!Sans (G), where they both get protective and flustered. 
> 
> Hope you cuties enjoy! ;D

“Is the blindfold really necessary?”

Your amused question was met with a low chuckle behind you, causing a familiar thrill to run through your veins as dexterous fingers shifted your hair to the side to keep from catching it in the knot of the strip of fabric being tied around your eyes. 

“As much as you’re a sight for sore eyesockets, angel, trust me - it’ll be worth the surprise.”

G ran his hands through your hair and down to your shoulders as he finished tying the knot. He leaned in, ensuring his words were spoken close to your ear with a tone that allowed you to  _ hear _ that charming smirk of his. In front you came another voice, smooth and articulate.

“It is true, dearheart - while I would normally ensure your surprise is wrapped, well, this time-”

“-It’s  _ you _ we’re havin’ to wrap.”

G interrupted the honeyed voice of Aster, his smirk only growing as Aster huffed out a dry but good-hearted sigh. You felt Aster’s hand take up your own, and your heart skipped a beat as he then kissed your knuckles. You were at their mercy like this, and given how  _ naturally _ they always managed to fluster you, you couldn’t help but wonder just what you were getting yourself into with adding the secretive anticipation of the blindfold to the mix.

Aster lingered over your knuckles, and you could feel his mouth slip into that dashing smile you loved so much.

“Your trust is the greatest gift, my dear,” he murmured. “I assure you, you will always find it well-placed with us - even if G has an unparalleled knack for mischief.”

He chuckled at that, and you felt yourself drawn forward by Aster’s guiding hand, down the paved walkway you’d stood on for the blindfolding and towards Aster’s parked car that the two had arrived to pick you up in. G’s arm looped around your shoulders, keeping you close to his side as he joined in Aster’s chuckling.

“Hey - for our angel here, it’s always with a  _ pleasurable _ endgame in mind,” he said easily, his fingertips teasingly stroking over your arm, making you flush.

“And I  _ clearly  _ let you get away with too much,” you quipped back, grinning despite yourself. Aster guided you to sit smoothly, holding open the door. His car was a vintage model, meticulously cared for and worked on to keep it in excellent shape, and even featured the old style of bench seating in the front - which was perfect, as it allowed G to slide in next to you as Aster circled the car and took the driver’s seat, leaving you sitting in between the two of them comfortably. Sure, G could warp you, but for some date nights it was particularly nice to have the companionship and extra time taking Aster’s car allowed.

“Or not enough,” G teased, his body brushing over yours as he buckled you in, lingering as Aster started the car with the soft rumbling roar of the engine you’d become well acquainted with and even fond of. You heard the buckling of their seatbelts before G shifted close again, his arm going around your shoulders as the car started moving. He smelled faintly of the well-loved leather of his jacket and the clove cigarettes he so often smoked, and it was easy to settle comfortably against his side as Aster’s hand switched between the stickshift and resting on your closest hand. 

Music that suited your taste played on the radio as the drive went on, and you traded teasing back-and-forths with G as Aster chimed in with observations, amusements, and teasing of his own. Along the way you felt G lean forward a little, turning up the music - drowning out any potential attempt for you to  _ hear _ where they might be taking you.

You earned Aster’s soft laugh and a smirking kiss against your hair from G at the slight pout that crossed your face at that realization. 

They knew you well.

You were just starting to get used to the feeling of being blinded when suddenly Aster’s hand on your own tightened before moving to change gears. The movement of the car changed noticeably, and before you knew it, he’d parked the car, and with a smooth click of seatbuckles releasing, you found your body framed by the press of two tall skeletons who were leaning  _ very _ distractingly close. Your breath hitched as you felt Aster’s curved index finger trace the line of your jaw, and you couldn’t help but bite your lip as G’s grip smoothed down to your waist.

“Much as I’d like to see more of those blindfolded reactions of yours, angel,” G said, “We don’t wanna be late…”

He almost posed that as a question, and you heard Aster lightly smack G’s shoulder before he huffed an exasperated chuckle and refocused his attention on you.

“We’ve arrived, dearheart. Go ahead and take off your blindfold.”

Too excited to see to remain distracted for long, your hands lifted to tug your blindfold down rather than properly untie it - and immediately your eyes widened at the sight outside the car.

“ _ You didn’t _ ,” you breathed, your hands gripping tighter at the scrap of cloth.

“We did,” G replied, grinning. 

You were in a rather nice part of downtown, a side of it bustling with great restaurants, bars, live music venues, and any number of things to do - and right now, you were parked outside a sizeable but intimate semi-outdoor venue boasting large posters for your favorite band doing a one-night-only show that had been sold out within minutes of the tickets being available online. You’d lamented the loss of the chance to see them, given the unique opportunity - but had simply chalked it up to fate and resigned yourself to waiting for some other chance to see them.

Apparently, fate in the form of your two skeletal significant others had something different in mind.

You knew better than to ask how they’d gotten tickets - with G’s connections to the live music business and Aster’s - well, his connections  _ period _ , that was hardly a question that needed much considering. Still, the fact that they’d thought of this, thought to go  _ together _ , to surprise you - 

“Guys, this- this is-” your chest was swelling with too many emotions to articulate, so instead you were suddenly turning in their grasps, your arms going around both of them as your kiss met first the corner of G’s mouth, and then Aster’s, you smile incandescent as you pulled back to beam at them, a glimmer of wetness at the corner of your eyes. “This is  _ amazing! _ Thank you - thank you, oh wow, this is too much-”

Aster’s cheeks were tinged with the glimmer of his emerald magic, and he smiled warmly at you, his sockets partially lidded as his hand slipped into your hair, fondly bumping his forehead to yours in a show of intimate affection.

“Nothing is too much if it brings joy to your soul, my dear,” he said, as maddeningly charming in that smile of his as ever.

G kissed your cheek from your opposite side, his hand scooped around your waist and tugging you closer. “That’s a seconded opinion, y’know. But hey - they’ve got a killer opening act we’re gonna miss if we don’t get going, and rumor has it they might be signing merch for early comers who know just where to go,” he said with a wink, causing you to make a sound suspiciously close to a squeal as you were suddenly all but pushing him to hurry and climb out of the car, making both him and Aster laugh as they went along readily with your excitement.

“What are we waiting for, then??” You urged brightly, practically buzzing with your eagerness. “Let’s go!”

* * *

 

 

You were breathless, your hair mussed, your grin incomparable as you finally left the venue hours later. You had a small bag of merch - signed, of course - hanging from one shoulder, and one hand was entertwined with G’s while Aster’s arm looped around your shoulders to tuck you close on your opposite side. The streets were lively despite the late hour thanks to it being the weekend, forcing you all a little closer to one another - not that you minded one bit.

“I don’t care that I’ve said it too many times to count already - that was  _ amazing _ ,” you insisted again, still beaming and thrumming with the excitement from the show. You could still practically feel the driving beats of the music pumping through you, and as you waited to cross the street, your hand squeezed G’s. 

A clove cigarette was hanging from his mouth, and his lidded gaze drew your bright-eyed one as his thumb stroked over your knuckles. “Gotta say, angel, I feel like I was the one gettin’ the treat - haven’t seen you  _ that _ stirred up since  _ my _ last show,” he said, quirking a brow and grinning. 

“It’s not a comparison or anything-!” You quickly said, squeezing his hand in turn. “Just - I’ve loved them for  _ so long _ . Even when it felt like I was alone, I always had their music, and it just… it just really  _ hits _ you, y’know…?”

G released your hand to instead shift his grip to go around your middle, chuckling as he bent down closer to you.

“Just teasin’, sweetheart. After all, you may like hearing them sing as well as me, but only me ‘n Aster get to hear the best kinda way  _ you _ sing-”

You shoved playfully at him, your face heating up despite your smile and your protesting gasp. Aster drew you closer to him in response, his own grin picking up playfully as he looped his arms around you while G recovered from pretending to lose his balance. 

“It looks as though you may quickly find yourself without such grace tonight, G, if you are not careful,” he said, body arching closer to yours as he drew you back against his chest. One of his hands lifted to trace over your collarbone, his voice dipping in that way few had ever had the privilege to hear. “Our dearest may willingly submit to the joys we stoke, after all, but it remains a privilege she grants…” His head dipped lower, brushing a kiss to your neck as he swept your hair aside, chuckling warmly against your sensitive skin at the skip of your heartbeat. 

“Don’t go playin’ dirty now, A,” G shot back, stepping back up smoothly to stand in front of you, only a breath shy of his own body pressing against yours. His hand tipped your chin up, guiding your gaze up to meet his. “You know as well as I do that she  _ likes _ the build-up ‘n the play… don’t you, angel?”

Your lips had parted ever so slightly, caught between your two partners in a way that you couldn’t get enough of. 

“Only as much as you do,” you replied, your eyes narrowing playfully despite the harder beat of your heart. Both of their senses were sharper than your own when it came to hearing, so you were generally left with little to do but hope they couldn’t tell in a given instance when they got your heart rate speeding up.

… Based on the crooked grin on G’s face, he could absolutely tell. 

He bent closer, his eyes lidded. “... Then that means you like it a  _ substantial _ amount, angel,” he purred. You felt Aster behind you, his arms curving perfectly around you, as he too bent to dip his head closer once more.

“The feeling is  _ quite _ mutual,” Aster murmured.

Before you could respond, suddenly you found yourself lifted, catching an amicable roll of the eyelights from G as you realized Aster had swept you up into his arms the moment the crosswalk light shifted in your favor. He stepped smoothly over the large puddle that had been at the edge of the sidewalk, smiling widely as he winked at you in an absurdly dashing manner.

“Forgive my indulgences, my dear - I really can’t help but desire to whisk you off your feet whenever the opportunity presents itself,” he said, his gaze warm and heated as you looked up at him, your arms already automatically looped around his neck, his soft scarf brushing pleasantly over your hands. 

G snickered at his side, his hand tapping your foot as you crossed the street, drawing gazes you could barely notice for how easily your attention had been stolen, leaving you flustered but admittedly delighted. 

“Sorry, angel. Wherever we’re involved, there’s always goin’ to be  _ something  _ mischievous a _ foot _ ,” he said, quirking a brow at you as he took a drag of his clove cigarette. 

You laughed at the wordplay, wiggling your foot back at him. “You  _ know _ I wouldn’t have it any other way,” you shot back, fond and lighthearted. 

You reached the other sidewalk, and with a playful put-upon sigh, Aster reluctantly lowered you to your feet, steadying you as you stood properly once more. 

“You can’t carry her  _ everywhere _ , A,” G said, grinning, pocketing his hands as you smoothed out your outfit. 

Aster left one hand on your shoulder, his other naturally folding behind his back as his own smile went crooked and his brow lifted. 

“Surely you know me better than that, to extend such a challenge,” Aster drawled.

“Maybe I’m talkin’ about a bet, instead,” G replied, his grin growing.

“Oh god,” you muttered, your grin lifting as you blushed. It wasn’t uncommon for the two to have some sort of harmless bet or challenge going - but it almost  _ always _ ended up in you being thoroughly flustered. In the best kind of ways, of course, but when the two of them had their charm directed at you at the same time, you always felt a little like your knees might give out. Granted, you  _ were  _ all but guaranteed that at least one of them would be there to catch you. The thought of it made your heart flutter even as the two bantered and began to set up some sort of bet -

A sudden unfamiliar grip on your arm yanked you backwards.

You spun around towards the source with a surprised yelp falling from your lips, finding yourself face to face with a man flanked by a few others. The one with his grip on your arm you realized smelled of alcohol, heavily so, but before you could yank yourself away, he started talking.

“You should keep better company, a cute girl like you - c’mon, ditch those freaks ‘n come with me ‘n my friends, we’ll show you a good time-”

He didn’t have the chance to register the flash of movement that occurred within the following fraction of a second. 

Suddenly you couldn’t see him any longer - instead all you saw was G’s back, his usually laidback posture hard, tense in that way you recognized from when people got too rowdy at a bar and tried to drag someone uninvolved into it. This, though - this was  _ more  _ than that. You could feel the hum of energy rolling off of him, and while you couldn’t see his face, the faces of the man’s entourage told you that it was the last expression on earth  _ they _ wanted to see.

It was Aster that caught you, your back to his chest, and you felt your arm raise under gentle pressure from his touch - deadly silent, he observed where you’d been grabbed… it ached, and might bruise slightly, but there wasn’t time to focus on it as G spoke up.

“Your first mistake was grabbing her.” G’s voice was a terrible sort of even - almost as languid as he normally spoke, but with none of the ease. “... The second, talking to her.” You could see the curl of smoke rising from over his skull. The way it curled seemed somehow thicker, almost disjointed, as if his magic itself was clinging and distorting it into some shape it wasn’t meant to be. “ _ You don’t want to be making a third mistake.” _

There was a sound of dissent from the other side of G, but Aster grabbed your attention again.

“... Forgive me, dearheart, for not preventing your injury,” he spoke quietly. Your head turned up to him, your body already naturally angling slightly his direction.

“No, no, I just- you couldn’t have known, it was a surprise, was all,” you insisted, shaking your head. It really had been - but Aster’s expression didn’t lift, remaining a sort of serious without accompanying secondary tells that you didn’t see often.

He simply shook his head once, gently lowering your arm and straightening. Stepping from behind you, his hand went briefly to your shoulder, squeezing it gently before guiding you to stand perfectly behind him and G as he stepped to G’s side.

“Gentleman - though  _ clearly _ that title is ill-fitting - I ask that you leave immediately. Please do not that this is less of a request, and more of a firm insistence,” he said, his voice low and plain. 

The energy humming in front of you increased, doubled with both Aster and G stepping up to bat, a sensation of dark, challenged protectiveness emanating from them. However, it seemed that the men were either too dense or too drunk to notice, and the same one that first spoke raised his voice again.

“Or what, you  _ demons _ ?” he spat, making you inhale sharply at the slur towards monsters. “You’re gonna attack us? I fuckin’ dare you - you come into  _ our _ towns, steal  _ our _ women, think that you’re  _ better _ than us-”

“You’re on thin ice,  _ pal _ ,” G warned, but you could glimpse the men bearing closer to both Aster and G. Aster’s arm was lightly extended, clearly barring any attempt at accessing you, but they didn’t seem to care - and the face-off was drawing more and more attention, passerby slowing down, mutterings about ‘drunken idiots’ and ‘demons’ and ‘poor girl’ reaching your ears. Your chest was tight, your hands clenched as you stood helplessly behind Aster and G.

G’s stance widened, and you caught his left hand sliding out of his pocket, his fingers spread. At the edge of vision, you could catch a flicker of golden magic dancing along his bones and the hole in his palm.

“Bet you went and drugged her or, or - cast some spell on her, just like you do all kinds of people-” the man wasn’t stopping, stepping closer, jabbing a finger at G, and then Aster. His friends, riling up themselves, were starting to shout too.

“That’s how your kind managed to get rights, isn’t it-”

“-how they get all their women-”

“-not right, bunch of freaks-”

“-she’s probably too far gone to even know it’s wrong-”

“ _ SILENCE.” _

The shadows were writhing around your feet, harmless to you but less so towards your aggressors - the shadows’ edges hinted with a glimmer of ethereal green as Aster’s voice cut through their growing noise.  _ Anger _ was not something that showed on Aster often - no, not anger. It took a lot to cross him - but when he  _ was  _ crossed… that was it.

His voice was perfectly calm, but weighted with a dark, shadowed edge that made the crowd circling you now - offering no help, only spectating - inch a little further back. 

“You do not have the ability to recognize folly. As such, this has no point in continuing-”

“Fuck you, demon, you think you’re in charge here-”

G’s hand was glowing now, his stance wider,  _ ready _ , and you heard him growl low in his ribcage, about to lash out as a few of the once again shouting men lifted glass bottles, hostile, and your eyes widened.

No one in the crowd was helping, cops would never arrive in time and may only make things worse, the two people you cared about most in this world were fiercely protecting you against a rising drunken threat-

“ _ No-!” _

You shoved forward past both Aster and G, ducking around them as they startled slightly at your outcry and movement. But you were already standing between them and the men, your arms thrown out to your side.

They both called your name quickly and reached for you, but you shook your head fiercely, holding your ground.

“No!  _ Don’t fight-! _ ” You were staring down the antagonistic but shocked faces of the drunken men who’d grabbed you. “You’ve got it all wrong-”

“What, so you  _ do  _ wanna get away from those freaks?” the closest man sneered, and your brow drew down, your fists balling slightly but not dropping. 

“ _ They’re not freaks _ ,” you said, your voice steadier than you could have hoped for. You wouldn’t crack, not while standing up for them,  _ with _ them - not when not only were they standing up for you, ensuring  _ you _ were safe, but when  _ they _ were being attacked here, too. 

You weren’t just going to stand by and let that happen. 

“They’re people too, people with  _ souls _ , with lives and personalities and joys and sorrows and things that make them angry and things that make them laugh-”

You stepped forward, your arms dropping, but only to take an even stronger stance, not breaking your gaze from the men in front of you. You didn’t notice the way G and Aster were staring at you too, now, still readied but raptly attentive, nor the way the crowd had inched closer, falling into a hush.

“They’re  _ incredible _ . Monsters are people too, no matter what you think - and they don’t need your approval to be so. And  _ I _ don’t need your approval to want to be with them - and while it’s none of your business, I  _ am _ with them!” You said, your voice tinged with pride, a smile growing on your face as you opened your arms again, gesturing back to G and Aster. “And you know what?  _ I love them _ . I love them more than I’ve ever loved anybody, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Every day I get to spend with them is a day I treasure and wouldn’t trade for the  _ world _ .”

One of your hands shifted forward, and you pointed at the men.

“So get your heads in the 21st century, okay?  _ No one _ needs your approval to exist, to love, or to be loved.”

The man in front stared at you for another beat, slightly slack-jawed, before finally he took a step back, his face screwing up - and turned, half making a rude gesture at you but grumbling to his friends about getting out of there. Without trying to convince him otherwise, the group agreed and moved quickly in the opposite direction, disappearing around the next block corner. 

Around you, you heard some wolf-whistles and a couple cheers and laughs as the crowd started to dissipate, snapping you out of your focus as you suddenly started blushing, realizing just what you had done.

“Oh, oh god - I’m sorry, guys, I didn’t mean to-”

You’d turned around, your hands lifted as you looked up apologetically and embarrassed towards G and Aster - only to freeze at the looks on their faces.

Both were staring at you with wide sockets, their faces flushed with the color of their magic. 

G’s readied stance had slackened, and the shadows rolling around Aster’s feet had calmed, while his holed hand had lifted to cup over his mouth as if to ineffectually try to contain what was very, very clearly him being  _ flustered _ . G was in a similar state, but rather than cover his mouth his cigarette simply hung loosely from it before it fell forgotten to the ground, already snuffed out.

Your own eyes widened in the few beats of silence that passed as they stared at you, and you stared at them. 

“ _ Angel _ ,” G finally breathed, his voice almost sounding hoarse. “You…”

Aster took a single step forward first, his hand parting ever so slightly from his mouth. 

“... Even so publically, you…”

Your face was heating further, nearly to unbearable levels. You’d shared that you’d loved them before, and they’d shared such in return, of course, but… there was nothing that came close to comparing the fervent declaration you’d just made on a fairly busy street with an  _ audience _ .

“I, well - I mean, i-it’s true,” you managed to say, feeling suspended in time as you looked between them, uncertain of what to do.

The choice was taken from you as suddenly you found yourself pulled into G’s grasp a scant second before his mouth crashed against yours, stealing your breath before you met his kiss just as passionately, your hands lifting to grip at the fluff of his hood. 

You felt your body moved by the pressure of his own, your steps following readily without needing to open your eyes. Your face canted against his as his hands tucked your body close to him, your back arching slightly into his grasp as he deepened the passionate kiss before his teeth dragged along your lower lip to elicit even more. You gasped into the kiss, finally breaking for air - only to find Aster’s hand sliding under your chin, turning your face up towards him as he pressed close to kiss you senseless next. 

Your head was swimming with the rush of heat and the release of the tension of the standoff. One hand released G’s hood to lift to Aster’s chest at your side, gripping the soft fabric of his sweater as his hands slid into your hair. You found yourself half-turned in G’s hold, his kisses averted to the curve of your neck and his hands wrapping around your middle as Aster claimed your lips.

Finally he broke from you, his eyelights glowing low and intense as he drank in the sight of you panting in their hold, looking as if he was having to hold himself back from continuing. G’s voice came first as you tried to recover, tried to find your thoughts, murmuring low against your neck.

“I know I call you angel, but it’s times like this I really wonder if you  _ did _ fall from the heavens.”

You shivered at his tone, at the husky quality to his voice. Aster drew you closer, and you realized you were now tucked in the barely-more-private shadows of a closed storefront. People were still passing by, much to your embarrassment - but as Aster’s gaze captured yours again, you found your ability to care fully slipping away once again.

“I do believe it’s time we take our dear love somewhere far more amenable to showing what her words and actions have done to us,” he said, addressing G even as he held your gaze.

“Pick up your car tomorrow?” G checked, clearly on the same page. His grip around you shifted to ensure he had a hand on Aster as well while your heart thrilled, your grip on the two reflexively tightening in anticipation. One of his hands shifted to lay over yours on his chest, plucking it up to once again press a kiss to your knuckles, searching your gaze for a suspended, breathless moment. 

Finding the answer he sought, Aster nodded once in reply to G’s question, his eyesockets lidding further as his smile curved dashingly devilish. 

“We have something far more important to devote our attention to currently, after all.”

Without any further warning, G’s magic wrapped around the three of you, and you disappeared from downtown as your smile was captured in another passionate kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Extra shoutout to @thelazyhermits here! <3 Go check them out, they've got some lovely taste and are one of the sweetest people I've had the good luck to meet through this crazy, delightful fandom. <3
> 
> Also, leave a comment if you liked this oneshot! Your words really inspire me to keep writing, whether oneshots or on my longer projects, as opposed to just focusing on art. So I promise, aside from making me a flustered, excited mess in my own right for seeing a comment notification pop up, if you like my writing then you benefit too because it'll keep me going on this side of things ;D


	13. x Amber (Lilytale US Papyrus, aka lady!US Pap) - Coffee's Got Nothin' On You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lilytale is an AU of my own where instead of Sans/Pap of any variety being men, they're women. This drabble features Amber, Lilytale's Underswap Papyrus. <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heads up for very, _very_ slight suggestiveness towards the end.

Birds were singing, flowers were blooming, and what were _probably_ pancakes were sizzling not too far away in the kitchen, accompanied by the scent of a brewing pot of fresh coffee. It was all terribly inviting for a late Saturday morning, likely turning early afternoon.

Tucked underneath what had to be the softest, fluffiest comforter known to the world, you were unable to experience any of it.

“C’mon, Amber, _coffee…_ ” you murmured. Your arms looped around the long torso comprised largely of surprisingly sturdy and thick bones, subtly tinged with a magical warmth.

“mmmmn.”

You couldn’t help the huff of laughter that escaped you. There was a skeletal grin pressed to the muss of your sleep-ruffled hair, after all, despite the mild humming protest of your girlfriend. In turn you unhelpfully nuzzled against her sternum.

“What would you say if I let slip that I picked up a new kinda honey for those pancakes? Heard it puts the last batch you were stuck on to shame.”

One skeletal hand remained loosely tangled in your hair, scooped underneath and around you, but the other shifted, trailing from your waist to your back. Her movements were as languid as the tranquil hum of her soul you’d come to love so much.

“... i’d say i’ve got quite the _buzz_ just from holding the multiverse’s _sweetest_ human already, no leavin’ bed required,” she murmured. You could feel her grin hitch crookedly where her mouth was pressed to the crown of your skull. Her fingertips traced the bare curve of your soft skin, and light pressure had you burrowing closer to her, your bare body twined so perfectly with hers.

“Cheater,” you murmured. The upwards curve of your lips as you trailed a few kisses up to her collarbone made her chuckle, her voice still rough with sleep.

“you love it,” she replied. Her digits shifted at last in your hair, gently massaging your head in the way she knew would make you melt in her arms. You did precisely that, mumbling about rude skeleton women stealing your heart, and she laughed again, this time a little more clearly.

It was your turn to hum noncommittally then as you felt her shift, rolling you onto her chest as she shifted to lay on her back. She was more slight than her sister, naturally, as well as incredibly tall, but she was no classroom model of the bone structure of a human. You loved exploring the fused bones of her palms, the curves of her ribs, the curious plating of her vertebrae that now shifted as your lips moved from her collarbone to her neck.

“now who doesn’t wanna get up?” she teased, hands smoothing along your back. Magic danced, warm like sunlight as she turned her face to catch a kiss from you.

You hummed into it, hand slipping in tandem motion with hers to take her hand and intertwine your fingers.

“What can I say, you’re a terrible influence.”

“guilty as charged,” she chuckled. Her free hand skimmed over your hip as your joined hands brushed the comforter back enough to feel the sunlight cascading through the curtains and onto your skin. “will the judge give me an easy sentence, considerin’ the clear duress i‘m _under_?”

Her leg shifted, skimming along your thigh and shifting the blanket off further, revealing a bit more of the way the sun fell over you.

Your head pulled back as you propped yourself up just a little using your elbow. It was hard not to admire the way her lidded gaze stole your own as you felt the atmosphere settle over the two of you. Sunlight suited her, you always told her, though she always quipped not as much as you did, with the way you lit up her life.

… Sometimes she was too smooth for the good of your heart, you swore.

As it was, you could feel a familiar warmth rise on your cheeks at the sight of her like this, your hand clasped in hers to one side, her other slipping to trace down your arm as she seemed to take in the sight of you. Sunlight through partially closed blinds gave a soft glow to the room, and where it fell over her bones you swore she herself glowed.

“Jury’s still out,” you teased back, your voice still soft with your own temptation to simply fall back down into her embrace and sleep the day away.

It was hard to make out what ran through her own mind, but with the way her head tilted ever so slightly, the way her gaze lidded just a little further and her crooked grin went just a little softer, you had a fair guess.

“... hard to wanna change my lazy ways when layin’ here i get to hear the way your heart speeds up like that, hun…”

Her hand shifted to your chin, and slowly she guided you back down to her.

“What a shame,” you whispered, unable to look away. She chuckled, and her hand smoothed into your hair.

“gonna have to convince me more ‘n that, sweetness,” she murmured against your lips. “... or don’t. i’ve got all the time in the world for you, honey, ‘n i’m more than willin’ to spend it showin’ you the benefits of stayin’ in bed.”

Your agreement was lost in the kiss and the way she so thoroughly stole your breath.

It wasn’t until the sunlight filtering into her room had shifted noticeably and you heard her sister yelling in the direction of her door regarding breakfast and coffee being ready that you realized just how much time had passed. With her, things slowed down and simplified - it all felt _right_ , didn’t it… but maybe you could do with a little coffee, the both of you, to catch up to the day.

When you managed to breathlessly comment on that, Amber grinned.

“coffee’s got nothin’ on you,” she said. A shiver ran up your spine as she looked up at you from your now flipped positions, long, slender hands sliding over your favorite spots. “a moment with you’s worth a thousand, fast or slow.”

Her voice buzzed so warmly against your skin, and as she easily tossed aside the comforter and used a slight flare of magic to slide open the curtains and let the early afternoon sun fall over you in a way that fell just shy of the kind of warmth her touch instilled in you, you couldn’t help but return the sentiment.

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if you'd like to read more Lilytale, an AU of mine where it's the multiverse skeleton siblings you know and love but as women & sisters, check out my two Lilytale fics - Skeletons Sisters Meet the Landlady, and the ongoing Skeleton Sisters and the Architect. <3
> 
> leave a comment if you liked this! <3 they keep me inspired ;v; <3


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